Sarasin & Partners LLP Sells 20,643 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Sarasin & Partners LLP reduced its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 7.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 239,363 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 20,643 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises 2.4% of Sarasin & Partners LLP’s holdings, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Sarasin & Partners LLP owned 0.05% of Costco Wholesale worth $219,321,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Fermata Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.6% in the third quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 1,968 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,745,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the third quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,649 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,235,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,708 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,398,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Gill Capital Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Gill Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,270 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,164,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Scott Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Scott Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,348 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,247,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on COST. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Roth Mkm lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $943.19 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $418.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.38, a P/E/G ratio of 5.60 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $949.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $901.74. Costco Wholesale Co. has a twelve month low of $675.96 and a twelve month high of $1,008.25.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total value of $1,266,866.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,514,232. This represents a 4.91 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company 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.