Sapient Capital LLC Makes New $76.57 Million Investment in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 113,420 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $76,566,000. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 1.9% of Sapient Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of COST. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.2% during the 4th quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,618 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $10,309,000 after acquiring an additional 1,187 shares in the last quarter. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $297,000. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. One Charles Private Wealth Services LLC now owns 1,134 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $748,000 after purchasing an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. Horan Capital Advisors LLC. raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Horan Capital Advisors LLC. now owns 810 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $535,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Finally, Bordeaux Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 61.8% in the fourth quarter. Bordeaux Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,162 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,427,000 after buying an additional 826 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.6 %

COST traded up $11.46 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $743.90. 2,323,300 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,605,560. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $329.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 48.65, a PEG ratio of 4.95 and a beta of 0.77. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $730.46 and its 200 day simple moving average is $671.71. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $476.75 and a one year high of $787.08.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.11 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.30 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.62%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 30.35%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on COST shares. Roth Mkm upped their price target 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. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $680.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $795.00 to $805.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $760.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $694.48.

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.