Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI

Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI cut its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 53,171 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,696 shares during the period. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $48,719,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $5,182,316,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 74,796.3% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,521,893 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,394,465,000 after buying an additional 1,519,861 shares during the period. Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $95,452,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 100,422.3% during the 4th quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 796,137 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $729,476,000 after buying an additional 795,345 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,257,809 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,817,573,000 after buying an additional 587,303 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $1,034.34 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $963.62 and a 200 day moving average of $969.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $458.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 60.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $788.20 and a 12 month high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.09 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $63.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.36%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total transaction of $830,304.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,987 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This trade represents a 11.41% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total value of $3,351,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 41,077 shares in the company, valued at $38,242,687. This trade represents a 8.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 9,600 shares of company stock worth $9,140,195. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on COST shares. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,024.03.

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.