Ballast Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Ballast Inc. increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 3.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,928 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for 0.7% of Ballast Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Ballast Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,933,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Richelieu Gestion SA acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Steph & Co. raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 42.3% during the third quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 74 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 22 shares during the period. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 888.9% during the third quarter. Iron Horse Wealth Management LLC now owns 89 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, VP Yoram Rubanenko sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $680.33, for a total transaction of $1,700,825.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 5,910 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,020,750.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,400 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $662.30, for a total transaction of $927,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,220,540.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Yoram Rubanenko sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $680.33, for a total transaction of $1,700,825.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,910 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,020,750.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 15,582 shares of company stock worth $10,736,778 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on COST shares. Truist Financial upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $693.00 to $741.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 21st. Telsey Advisory Group increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $750.00 to $785.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, March 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $665.00 to $749.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Loop Capital increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $710.00 to $755.00 in a research report on Friday, January 19th. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $760.00 to $805.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $668.50.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $732.63 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $724.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $642.61. The stock has a market cap of $324.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.06 and a beta of 0.77. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $476.75 and a fifty-two week high of $787.08. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.62 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $58.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $59.11 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.73% and a return on equity of 28.80%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.30 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Investors of record on Friday, February 2nd were given a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 1st. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.68%.

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.