TRUE Private Wealth Advisors Has $4.79 Million Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

TRUE Private Wealth Advisors reduced its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 29.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,406 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,311 shares during the period. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors’ holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,793,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,308,615 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,252,274,000 after purchasing an additional 324,973 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 113,947.9% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,370,916 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,534,464,000 after acquiring an additional 7,364,453 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,650,562 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,102,941,000 after acquiring an additional 88,550 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,399,127 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,013,394,000 after purchasing an additional 125,444 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 2.3% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,075,065 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,726,107,000 after purchasing an additional 70,561 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total value of $1,793,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,210 shares in the company, valued at $9,155,409.10. This represents a 16.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total transaction of $1,266,866.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,400 shares in the company, valued at $24,514,232. The trade was a 4.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 11,016 shares of company stock worth $9,826,115. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.1 %

NASDAQ COST opened at $971.88 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $582.83 and a 52 week high of $976.30. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $907.62 and a 200-day moving average price of $871.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The company has a market cap of $430.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.65, a P/E/G ratio of 5.93 and a beta of 0.80.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 31.05%. The business had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $79.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.86 EPS. Costco Wholesale’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were given a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.48%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $850.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $880.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 target price for the company. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $908.81.

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.