Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by Saxon Interests Inc.

Saxon Interests Inc. lessened its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 87.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 551 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 3,934 shares during the quarter. Saxon Interests Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $364,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in COST. Richelieu Gestion SA purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Steph & Co. lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 42.3% in the 3rd quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 74 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares in the last quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 888.9% in the 3rd quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 89 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

COST stock traded up $0.55 during trading on Thursday, hitting $732.63. 1,711,632 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,158,359. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $476.75 and a one year high of $787.08. The stock has a market cap of $324.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.90, a P/E/G ratio of 5.07 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $724.29 and a 200 day simple moving average of $642.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $58.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.11 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.73% and a return on equity of 28.80%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.30 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.78 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 2nd were given a $1.02 dividend. This represents a $4.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 1st. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is presently 26.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Telsey Advisory Group increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $750.00 to $785.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 4th. Northcoast Research lowered shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $620.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, December 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $665.00 to $749.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $610.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $580.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 15th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $668.50.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Caton Frates sold 740 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $683.50, for a total transaction of $505,790.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,593,803.50. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $662.30, for a total transaction of $927,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,922 shares in the company, valued at $9,220,540.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Caton Frates sold 740 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $683.50, for a total transaction of $505,790.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,721 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,593,803.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,582 shares of company stock worth $10,736,778 in the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale 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.