Founders Financial Alliance LLC Sells 125 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Founders Financial Alliance LLC lowered its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 10.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,091 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 125 shares during the quarter. Founders Financial Alliance LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,000,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. SoundView Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $5,439,000. Miller Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,419,000. Cornerstone Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Advisors LLC now owns 29,400 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $26,938,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 41,185 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $37,737,000 after purchasing an additional 1,554 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 25,937 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $23,765,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 3.1 %

Shares of COST stock opened at $934.41 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $989.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $944.28. The company has a market cap of $414.78 billion, a PE ratio of 54.87, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.82. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $697.27 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $63.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. Equities analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on COST shares. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Monday, March 3rd. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,090.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday. Evercore ISI reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Roth Mkm boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,030.43.

About Costco Wholesale

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.