BlueSpruce Investments LP Makes New Investment in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

BlueSpruce Investments LP purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 573 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $567,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Peterson Wealth Services boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.5% in the second quarter. Peterson Wealth Services now owns 13,616 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $13,479,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. Fishman Jay A Ltd. MI raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.5% during the 2nd quarter. Fishman Jay A Ltd. MI now owns 16,888 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $16,718,000 after buying an additional 575 shares during the last quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 15,799 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $15,640,000 after buying an additional 312 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.7% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 43,356,271 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $42,920,107,000 after buying an additional 711,560 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Independent Solutions Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the second quarter. Independent Solutions Wealth Management LLC now owns 20,638 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $20,430,000 after acquiring an additional 53 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COST opened at $884.47 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $392.67 billion, a PE ratio of 47.37, a P/E/G ratio of 6.00 and a beta of 1.00. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $867.12 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.23. The company has a fifty day moving average of $916.22 and a two-hundred day moving average of $951.10.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, December 11th. The retailer reported $4.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.27 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $67.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $67.03 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.96% and a return on equity of 30.16%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $4.04 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 31st were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 31st. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.56%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.00, for a total value of $3,093,615.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,740 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,912,100. This trade represents a 25.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP William Richard Wilcox sold 2,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $930.13, for a total transaction of $2,232,312.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 2,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,860,260. The trade was a 54.55% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 9,720 shares of company stock worth $9,010,257 over the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Gordon Haskett reduced their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 1st. BTIG Research began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. They set a “buy” rating and a $1,115.00 target price for the company. Raymond James Financial lowered their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,070.00 to $1,000.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,060.00 to $1,025.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $990.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Eighteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $998.70.

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.