AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Has $17.11 Million Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd reduced its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 20,124 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 239 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $17,105,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter worth $32,000. Vima LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Bank & Trust Co bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the second quarter worth about $48,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 5,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,041,057.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $848.53, for a total transaction of $1,272,795.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 10,992 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,327,041.76. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total transaction of $298,035.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at $5,041,057.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 4,970 shares of company stock worth $4,249,526. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock traded up $16.39 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $908.90. 2,097,873 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,966,655. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.45. The firm has a market capitalization of $402.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.84 and a beta of 0.78. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $851.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $790.20. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $533.12 and a 1-year high of $918.93.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.43 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.75%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on COST. Roth Mkm reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $676.00 target price (up previously from $650.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, May 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Loop Capital increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $970.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $925.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $824.50.

About Costco Wholesale

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.