Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Price Up 0.2% – Here’s What Happened

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) was up 0.2% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $930.11 and last traded at $923.36. Approximately 420,315 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 72% from the average daily volume of 1,523,947 shares. The stock had previously closed at $921.37.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on COST shares. UBS Group raised their price target 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. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,019.00 to $1,020.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $946.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $897.99. The firm has a market cap of $415.91 billion, a PE ratio of 55.02, a P/E/G ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 0.84.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.50%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.25%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total transaction of $1,793,420.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,155,409.10. The trade was a 16.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,400 shares in the company, valued at $24,514,232. This represents a 4.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,808,255 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,489,574,000 after buying an additional 32,074 shares during the last quarter. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 62.8% during the third quarter. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors now owns 2,417 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,143,000 after buying an additional 932 shares during the period. Hudson Value Partners LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 7.6% during the third quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC now owns 8,046 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,133,000 after buying an additional 568 shares during the period. Nwam LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the third quarter worth about $20,056,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 15.0% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,662 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,020,000 after buying an additional 1,001 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

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.