Virginia Wealth Management Group Inc. Decreases Stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Virginia Wealth Management Group Inc. reduced its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 31.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 630 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 286 shares during the period. Virginia Wealth Management Group Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $596,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mainsail Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. Mainsail Financial Group LLC now owns 3,158 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,987,000 after buying an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 11,453 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $10,832,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.9% in the 1st quarter. Donaldson Capital Management LLC now owns 87,990 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $83,219,000 after buying an additional 800 shares during the last quarter. Ellenbecker Investment Group boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Ellenbecker Investment Group now owns 551 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $522,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the last quarter. Finally, My Legacy Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 11.9% during the first quarter. My Legacy Advisors LLC now owns 2,902 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,745,000 after purchasing an additional 309 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Gary Millerchip sold 1,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $940.01, for a total transaction of $1,034,011.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 11,165 shares in the company, valued at $10,495,211.65. This trade represents a 8.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,002.77, for a total transaction of $3,008,310.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 58,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,705,164.11. This trade represents a 4.87% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,000 shares of company stock worth $10,825,205 over the last quarter. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ COST opened at $1,007.27 on Wednesday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $793.00 and a 12 month high of $1,078.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $446.70 billion, a PE ratio of 59.15, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $995.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $980.29.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.04. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. The business had revenue of $63.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $62.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $3.78 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 2nd. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on COST shares. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Cfra Research raised shares of Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,070.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,035.32.

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.