Institute for Wealth Management LLC. Reduces Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Institute for Wealth Management LLC. trimmed its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 8,526 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 56 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 0.9% of Institute for Wealth Management LLC.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Institute for Wealth Management LLC.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $5,628,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Richelieu Gestion SA bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 200.0% in the fourth quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the period. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Steph & Co. boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 42.3% in the third quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 74 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $49,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total value of $567,445.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $7,228,600. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total transaction of $567,445.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total transaction of $1,072,245.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,785,786.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 11,727 shares of company stock worth $8,170,388. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock traded down $3.95 on Friday, hitting $707.30. 1,332,583 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,087,200. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $730.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $659.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $476.75 and a 12-month high of $787.08. The company has a market cap of $313.69 billion, a PE ratio of 46.30, a PEG ratio of 4.76 and a beta of 0.77.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.09. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.73% and a return on equity of 28.80%. The business had revenue of $58.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $59.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.30 EPS. Costco Wholesale’s revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Investors of record on Friday, April 26th will be issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 25th. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.66%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on COST. Loop Capital decreased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $820.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Roth Mkm lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $601.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $665.00 to $749.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $760.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $795.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $691.28.

Costco Wholesale Company Profile

Costco Wholesale Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the operation of membership warehouses in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, Mexico, Japan, the United Kingdom, Korea, Australia, Taiwan, China, Spain, France, Iceland, New Zealand, and Sweden. The company offers branded and private-label products in a range of merchandise categories.