Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. Takes Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 674 shares of the retailer's stock, valued at approximately $618,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Swedbank AB raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 443,747 shares of the retailer's stock worth $393,391,000 after purchasing an additional 6,495 shares in the last quarter. United Bank increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 7.5% in the third quarter. United Bank now owns 5,962 shares of the retailer's stock worth $5,285,000 after buying an additional 416 shares during the last quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 17.8% during the third quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 1,184 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,049,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 16.0% in the third quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 15,652 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $14,772,000 after acquiring an additional 2,156 shares during the last quarter. Finally, 49 Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 36.5% in the third quarter. 49 Wealth Management LLC now owns 962 shares of the retailer's stock worth $853,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

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Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST stock traded up $4.22 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $930.26. The company had a trading volume of 1,621,482 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,823,339. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $412.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.62, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.82. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $697.27 and a 12 month high of $1,078.24. The firm's fifty day moving average is $987.58 and its 200 day moving average is $945.73.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $63.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total value of $3,351,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 41,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,242,687. The trade was a 8.06 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on COST. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Monday, March 3rd. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $840.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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 report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,029.00.

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.