Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Stake Reduced by Victory Capital Management Inc.

Victory Capital Management Inc. reduced its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 8.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 404,181 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 35,172 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $358,315,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 18.4% in the 3rd quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 22,963 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $20,357,000 after acquiring an additional 3,561 shares in the last quarter. First Heartland Consultants Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.6% in the third quarter. First Heartland Consultants Inc. now owns 2,094 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,856,000 after buying an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the third quarter valued at about $4,168,000. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 45,777 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $40,582,000 after purchasing an additional 1,672 shares during the period. Finally, Total Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter worth about $212,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,320,787.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 4,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $891.15, for a total transaction of $3,921,060.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,202 shares in the company, valued at $9,091,512.30. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,320,787.50. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 12,136 shares of company stock valued at $10,806,570. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock traded up $4.97 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $937.85. The company had a trading volume of 442,414 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,923,889. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $894.30 and a 200 day moving average price of $854.01. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $572.24 and a fifty-two week high of $962.00. The firm has a market cap of $415.54 billion, a PE ratio of 56.56, a P/E/G ratio of 5.81 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.44.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $79.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.91 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 31.05%. The business’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $4.86 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st will be issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.49%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on COST shares. Gordon Haskett raised shares of Costco Wholesale from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $925.00 price objective for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $985.00 to $990.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,000.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Melius Research began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $950.00 price objective on the stock. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $905.30.

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.