Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Acquired by Dimensional Fund Advisors LP

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 28.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,538,078 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 338,780 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 0.3% of Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest position. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,307,363,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Black Diamond Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 53.4% during the second quarter. Black Diamond Financial LLC now owns 557 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $474,000 after purchasing an additional 194 shares during the period. Abound Wealth Management raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 3.5% in the second quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 743 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $631,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the second quarter worth $4,226,000. Rathbones Group PLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.8% in the second quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 305,990 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $260,096,000 after acquiring an additional 2,463 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Plato Investment Management Ltd raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 4.3% in the second quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 13,117 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $11,149,000 after acquiring an additional 536 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Costco Wholesale news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,545,746.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total transaction of $298,035.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,041,057.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value of $1,266,300.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at $10,545,746.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,974 shares of company stock worth $4,252,856 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $916.00 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $406.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.75, a PEG ratio of 5.47 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.94. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $540.23 and a one year high of $923.83. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $861.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $806.45.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.51%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

COST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $910.00 to $915.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. StockNews.com upgraded Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Redburn Atlantic cut Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the company from $860.00 to $890.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Roth Mkm restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $676.00 price target (up previously from $650.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $844.52.

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.