KLCM Advisors Inc. Increases Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

KLCM Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,296 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. KLCM Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $855,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Richelieu Gestion SA bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 200.0% during the fourth quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Steph & Co. lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 42.3% during the third quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 74 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at $49,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.4 %

NASDAQ COST traded down $2.56 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $713.41. 568,521 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,090,320. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market cap of $316.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.78 and a beta of 0.77. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $730.92 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $658.84. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $476.75 and a 12-month high of $787.08.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.62 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $58.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.11 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.73% and a return on equity of 28.80%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.30 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast 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 dividend of $1.16 per share. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 25th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.65%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on COST. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $800.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Northcoast Research lowered shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $620.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, December 20th. Loop Capital lowered their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $820.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $680.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Roth Mkm increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $601.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $691.28.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Yoram Rubanenko sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $680.33, for a total value of $1,700,825.00. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 5,910 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,020,750.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, VP Yoram Rubanenko sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $680.33, for a total value of $1,700,825.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 5,910 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,020,750.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director W Craig Jelinek sold 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $685.93, for a total transaction of $5,487,440.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 216,212 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $148,306,297.16. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 13,442 shares of company stock worth $9,303,768. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.