Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Acquired by Candriam S.C.A.

Candriam S.C.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 6.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 58,453 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,767 shares during the period. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $53,559,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in COST. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Collier Financial acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on COST shares. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $840.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday. 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, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,021.93.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $1,047.75 on Thursday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $697.27 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.24. The company has a market cap of $465.10 billion, a PE ratio of 61.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.84. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average price of $987.79 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $941.75.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 27.25%.

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.