Vest Financial LLC Has $25.40 Million Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Vest Financial LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 10.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 25,653 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,507 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $25,395,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Pegasus Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $357,000. MGO One Seven LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 72.8% in the 2nd quarter. MGO One Seven LLC now owns 24,131 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $23,888,000 after purchasing an additional 10,163 shares in the last quarter. Cypress Capital Group boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.4% in the 2nd quarter. Cypress Capital Group now owns 8,313 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,229,000 after purchasing an additional 196 shares in the last quarter. Bill Few Associates Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Bill Few Associates Inc. now owns 811 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $803,000 after purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gordian Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Gordian Advisors LLC now owns 468 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $464,000 after purchasing an additional 14 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on COST shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,160.00 to $1,050.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,170.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 29th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $1,000.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,066.23.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.6%

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $935.56 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.03. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52-week low of $867.34 and a 52-week high of $1,078.23. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $951.65 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $972.04. The firm has a market cap of $414.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.38, a PEG ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 0.98.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.81 by $0.06. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.94% and a return on equity of 30.09%. The firm had revenue of $86.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $86.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $5.15 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total transaction of $595,230.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 2,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,343,222.10. This trade represents a 20.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.00, for a total transaction of $3,093,615.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,912,100. The trade was a 25.77% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is currently 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.