Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI Decreases Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI trimmed its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 9,569 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 38 shares during the period. Parsons Capital Management Inc. RI’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $8,768,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the third quarter worth approximately $58,000. Finally, Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth $58,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $958.67 on Wednesday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $952.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $904.81. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $686.26 and a 52-week high of $1,008.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98. The company has a market cap of $425.55 billion, a PE ratio of 56.29, a P/E/G ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.84.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.48%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 27.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on COST shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Raymond James upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $909.00 to $935.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,013.59.

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.