Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Trading Down 0.2%

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) shares were down 0.2% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $716.09 and last traded at $721.43. Approximately 259,195 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 2,055,816 shares. The stock had previously closed at $722.68.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on COST shares. Roth Mkm raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $601.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Gordon Haskett cut Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to an “accumulate” rating and set a $775.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $610.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Loop Capital lowered their price target on Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $820.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $795.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $694.48.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.2 %

The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $730.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $664.04. The stock has a market cap of $321.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 47.18, a P/E/G ratio of 4.76 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.62 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $58.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $59.11 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.80% and a net margin of 2.73%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.30 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.64%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 26.68%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $723.48, for a total transaction of $1,043,258.16. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,395 shares in the company, valued at $8,967,534.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total value of $567,445.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $723.48, for a total transaction of $1,043,258.16. Following the sale, the director now owns 12,395 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,967,534.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 3,727 shares of company stock valued at $2,682,948 over the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Richelieu Gestion SA acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 200.0% in the 4th quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.