Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by Atlas Financial Advisors Inc.

Atlas Financial Advisors Inc. trimmed its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 10.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 656 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 77 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 0.9% of Atlas Financial Advisors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Atlas Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $558,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,833,870 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $29,916,118,000 after buying an additional 473,702 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $3,628,694,000. Capital World Investors boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 8.1% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,824,778 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,802,147,000 after acquiring an additional 285,533 shares during the period. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,790,935 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,842,241,000 after purchasing an additional 81,853 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 32.9% during the 4th quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 1,278,824 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $844,126,000 after purchasing an additional 316,426 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $876.68 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $857.45 and a 200 day simple moving average of $799.68. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $540.23 and a 52 week high of $918.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.94. The company has a market cap of $388.66 billion, a PE ratio of 54.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.98 and a beta of 0.80.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 28.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Loop Capital upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $970.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $915.00 to $925.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. DA Davidson restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $780.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday. StockNews.com raised Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $765.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $828.73.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total transaction of $298,035.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,041,057.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total transaction of $1,266,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 12,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,545,746.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total value of $298,035.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at $5,041,057.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,974 shares of company stock valued at $4,252,856 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.