Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Trading Down 0.1% – What’s Next?

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) dropped 0.1% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $973.08 and last traded at $981.10. Approximately 402,673 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 1,925,866 shares. The stock had previously closed at $982.08.

Analyst Ratings Changes

COST has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of 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 report on Tuesday, September 10th. Melius Research assumed coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $950.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped 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. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $997.75.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $931.06 and a 200 day moving average of $888.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $431.09 billion, a PE ratio of 57.13, a PEG ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 0.82.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 33.19% and a net margin of 2.93%. The firm had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $79.91 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.86 earnings per share. Costco Wholesale’s revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.83 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were given a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 27.25%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 3,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $888.99, for a total transaction of $2,844,768.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,630 shares in the company, valued at $7,671,983.70. This trade represents a 27.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 4,400 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $891.15, for a total transaction of $3,921,060.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,202 shares in the company, valued at $9,091,512.30. This trade represents a 30.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,016 shares of company stock valued at $9,826,115 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 557.1% during the 2nd quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 2nd quarter worth $50,000. Fairway Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 230.0% during the second quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 66 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth $58,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Company 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.