Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by Israel Discount Bank of New York

Israel Discount Bank of New York lowered its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 6.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,490 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 107 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up 0.8% of Israel Discount Bank of New York’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Israel Discount Bank of New York’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $984,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Richelieu Gestion SA acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 200.0% during the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Steph & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 42.3% during the 3rd quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 74 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $49,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.7 %

COST traded down $5.18 on Monday, reaching $724.00. 850,543 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,040,624. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $730.41 and its 200-day moving average price is $667.48. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $476.75 and a 52-week high of $787.08. The company has a market cap of $321.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.22, a PEG ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.43.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.62 by $0.09. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.73% and a return on equity of 28.80%. The firm had revenue of $58.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.11 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.30 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be given a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 30.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Gordon Haskett cut shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to an “accumulate” rating and set a $775.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. StockNews.com cut Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Tigress Financial boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $745.00 to $870.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, March 15th. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and set a $680.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $610.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $694.48.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total value of $567,445.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total value of $567,445.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total transaction of $1,072,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,785,786.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,727 shares of company stock valued at $2,682,948 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.