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

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)’s share price traded down 0.1% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $1,053.10 and last traded at $1,061.17. 494,037 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average session volume of 1,908,035 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,061.92.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on COST shares. Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,040.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price objective on the stock. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,021.93.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.7 %

The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $963.01 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $916.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $468.17 billion, a PE ratio of 61.83, a PEG ratio of 6.26 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 27.25%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AMF Tjanstepension AB bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the third quarter worth $42,896,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 14.2% during the 3rd quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 1,004 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $890,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Affiance Financial LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 12.0% in the 3rd quarter. Affiance Financial LLC now owns 651 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $578,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Thomasville National Bank boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 12.7% during the third quarter. Thomasville National Bank now owns 816 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $723,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Finally, VitalStone Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the third quarter valued at approximately $71,000. 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.