Bellecapital International Ltd. Buys 215 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Bellecapital International Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 23,971 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 215 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises about 3.1% of Bellecapital International Ltd.’s holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Bellecapital International Ltd.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $12,906,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Aspire Private Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter worth about $20,406,948,000. Mach 1 Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter valued at $22,359,000. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. 25 LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the first quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Guardian Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter worth about $47,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.31% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $556.36 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $447.90 and a 1-year high of $571.16. The company has a 50-day moving average of $550.58 and a two-hundred day moving average of $518.87. The company has a market cap of $246.52 billion, a PE ratio of 41.21, a P/E/G ratio of 4.17 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 25th were paid a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 24th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.73%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is presently 30.22%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,565 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $533.00, for a total value of $834,145.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 13,329 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,104,357. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on COST. VNET Group restated a “reiterates” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, June 29th. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $575.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 25th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $535.00 to $550.00 in a research note on Friday, July 7th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $575.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, August 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $566.63.

Costco Wholesale Profile

Costco Wholesale Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the operation of membership warehouses in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Japan, Korea, Australia, Spain, France, Iceland, China, and Taiwan. It offers branded and private-label products in a range of merchandise categories.