W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc. Purchases 101 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc. grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.6% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,411 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 101 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for 3.1% of W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest position. W.H. Cornerstone Investments Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $3,451,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of COST. United Bank lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 9.2% during the first quarter. United Bank now owns 5,254 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,026,000 after purchasing an additional 444 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 33.6% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 383,691 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $220,948,000 after acquiring an additional 96,566 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 87.1% in the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 232 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $134,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Bridgefront Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the first quarter worth about $333,000. Finally, Next Century Growth Investors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.9% in the first quarter. Next Century Growth Investors LLC now owns 3,414 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,965,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.31% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,565 shares of Costco Wholesale 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 13,329 shares in the company, valued at $7,104,357. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.22% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COST opened at $562.72 on Tuesday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $447.90 and a 12-month high of $571.16. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $249.34 billion, a PE ratio of 41.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.11 and a beta of 0.79. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $551.21 and a 200 day moving average price of $519.89.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $560.00 to $640.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 3rd. StockNews.com started coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Wednesday, August 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $475.00 to $510.00 in a research report on Thursday, August 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus restated a “buy” rating and issued a $575.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, August 31st. Finally, 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. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.