Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. Sells 30,647 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. reduced its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 32.5% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 63,725 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 30,647 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 1.2% of Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.’s holdings, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $52,062,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the first quarter valued at $32,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 557.1% in the 2nd quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Vima LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, DSM Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. 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 research report on Friday, May 31st. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Loop Capital raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $970.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $925.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $765.00 to $830.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $824.50.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Costco Wholesale stock traded down $1.42 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $886.63. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,709,156 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,963,327. 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 company has a market cap of $393.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.93, a PEG ratio of 5.84 and a beta of 0.78. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $539.31 and a 1-year high of $918.93. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $852.83 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $792.18.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $58.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.16 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 30.02%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $3.43 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were issued 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 0.52%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.75%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,320,787.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total transaction of $543,430.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,775 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,320,787.50. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the insider now owns 12,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,545,746.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 4,974 shares of company stock worth $4,252,856. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.