KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Takes Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 156,640 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $143,525,000. Costco Wholesale makes up about 0.7% of KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS's portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Collier Financial bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total value of $830,304.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. The trade was a 11.41 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total transaction of $3,351,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 41,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $38,242,687. This trade represents a 8.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.5 %

COST traded up $4.22 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $930.26. 1,621,482 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,824,217. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $697.27 and a one year high of $1,078.24. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $987.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $946.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $412.74 billion, a PE ratio of 54.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.82.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last issued 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). The business had revenue of $63.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.50%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on COST. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating and set a $1,075.00 price objective (up from $980.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,135.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 7th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,029.00.

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.