S. R. Schill & Associates Purchases 45 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

S. R. Schill & Associates boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 2,392 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 45 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for 0.9% of S. R. Schill & Associates’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. S. R. Schill & Associates’ holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $2,033,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $3,628,694,000. Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the first quarter valued at about $510,353,000. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3,647.1% during the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 567,641 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $374,688,000 after buying an additional 552,492 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,360,168 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,640,940,000 after buying an additional 485,051 shares during the period. Finally, Swedbank AB acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter valued at about $285,618,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST traded up $8.64 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $863.57. The company had a trading volume of 1,747,604 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,998,390. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $844.97 and its 200 day simple moving average is $776.95. The company has a market capitalization of $382.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.33, a P/E/G ratio of 5.49 and a beta of 0.78. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $530.56 and a 1-year high of $896.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.08. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 30.02%. The firm had revenue of $58.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $58.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.43 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.97 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were given a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial raised their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $815.00 to $873.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $975.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $925.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Argus boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $805.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $920.00 to $915.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $824.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total transaction of $1,266,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,545,746.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value of $1,266,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,545,746.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total transaction of $298,035.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,041,057.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 3,350 shares of company stock valued at $2,837,131. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.