Tradewinds LLC. Acquires 708 Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Tradewinds LLC. increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 266.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 974 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 708 shares during the period. Tradewinds LLC.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $902,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.7% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 43,356,271 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $42,920,107,000 after acquiring an additional 711,560 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,325,416 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $18,141,062,000 after purchasing an additional 90,107 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,275,056 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $10,124,263,000 after purchasing an additional 150,844 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the second quarter valued at about $5,692,035,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 9.8% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,291,557 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,248,384,000 after buying an additional 383,887 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on COST shares. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,134.00 to $1,146.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,225.00 to $1,130.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 26th. HSBC decreased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,060.00 to $1,045.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, December 12th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Twenty-one investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $996.00.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $963.61 on Monday. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52-week low of $844.06 and a 52-week high of $1,078.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.19, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.04. The company has a market capitalization of $427.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 51.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $894.70 and a 200 day simple moving average of $929.88.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, December 11th. The retailer reported $4.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.27 by $0.07. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 29.35% and a net margin of 2.96%.The firm had revenue of $67.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $67.03 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $4.04 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 27.85%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Javier Polit sold 2,049 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $867.21, for a total value of $1,776,913.29. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 10,748 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,320,773.08. This represents a 16.01% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 2,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $935.68, for a total transaction of $2,526,336.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 6,851 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,410,343.68. This trade represents a 28.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 11,946 shares of company stock valued at $10,958,028. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Company Profile

Costco Wholesale Corporation operates a global chain of membership-only warehouse clubs that sell a wide array of merchandise in bulk at discounted prices. The company’s product mix includes groceries, fresh and frozen food, household goods, electronics, apparel, and seasonal items, augmented by its prominent private-label brand, Kirkland Signature. Costco’s business model centers on annual membership fees and high-volume, low-margin sales, designed to drive repeat purchasing and strong customer loyalty among both consumers and small-business buyers.

Beyond merchandise, Costco provides a range of ancillary services that complement its warehouses, including gasoline stations, pharmacy and optical services, hearing aid centers, photo services, and travel and insurance products.