Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Acquired by Cornerstone Advisors LLC

Cornerstone Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 29,400 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up approximately 1.1% of Cornerstone Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Cornerstone Advisors LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $26,938,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Collier Financial acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

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

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.09 by ($0.07). Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. The company had revenue of $63.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.02 billion. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital decreased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,075.00 price target (up previously from $980.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,000.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,030.43.

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.