Forefront Wealth Management Inc. Invests $4.91 Million in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Forefront Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 5,361 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $4,912,000. Costco Wholesale makes up about 4.5% of Forefront Wealth Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in COST. Cromwell Holdings LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 1,144 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,048,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. 44 Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,488 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,196,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. SRN Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. SRN Advisors LLC now owns 3,081 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,823,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Miramar Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Miramar Capital LLC now owns 525 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $481,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 22.2% during the 4th quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $51,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.5 %

NASDAQ COST opened at $909.26 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $403.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.39, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.82. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $697.27 and a one year high of $1,078.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The business’s fifty day moving average is $987.55 and its 200-day moving average is $944.60.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced 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). Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. The firm had revenue of $63.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $63.02 billion. Equities research analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $840.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Citigroup increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,035.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,029.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated 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 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 position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.