Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Price Up 2% After Dividend Announcement

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)’s share price rose 2% during trading on Wednesday after the company announced a dividend. The company traded as high as $1,091.92 and last traded at $1,087.61. 2,225,098 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 1% from the average daily volume of 2,211,298 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,066.14.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Friday, December 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 24th will be paid a dividend of $30.00 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 24th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, October 30th. They set a “strong-buy” rating on the stock. Tigress Financial raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,250.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 15th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Costco Wholesale from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 4th. Argus reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $1,230.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, September 28th. Finally, CICC Research assumed coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,050.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have assigned a Buy rating, nine have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,092.23.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $481.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.39, a PEG ratio of 4.71 and a beta of 0.85. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $957.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $973.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 24th. The retailer reported $6.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $6.54 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $95.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $94.97 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 3.04% and a return on equity of 27.60%. The company’s revenue was up 11.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $5.87 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 22.70 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

More Costco Wholesale News

These are some of the COST news items that stood out recently:

• Positive Sentiment: Costco declared a $30-per-share special dividend, totaling about $13.3 billion, payable December 4 to shareholders of record November 24. The board also reauthorized a $4 billion buyback, signaling substantial cash generation and a commitment to returning capital. Costco dividend and repurchase announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Bernstein raised its price target to $1,155 from $1,143 and maintained an Outperform rating. Jim Cramer also reiterated his bullish view, citing Costco’s value-focused model and ability to keep prices low. Street attention after Costco’s dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Commentary also presents Costco as a defensive retailer amid AI-related market uncertainty, pointing to its established business and value proposition as reasons investors may favor the stock. Costco as a defensive investment

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP William Richard Wilcox sold 1,100 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $958.21, for a total transaction of $1,054,031.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 3,094 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,964,701.74. The trade was a 26.23% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 2,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.93, for a total transaction of $2,015,046.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 7,134 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,534,244.62. This represents a 23.57% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in COST. Sarasin & Partners LLP lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 214,194 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $200,372,000 after purchasing an additional 13,795 shares during the last quarter. Silvant Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $16,013,000. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan now owns 158,416 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $148,193,000 after purchasing an additional 6,200 shares during the last quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 97.0% during the 3rd quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 3,531 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,214,000 after purchasing an additional 1,739 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hyperion Asset Management Ltd increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 9.0% during the 2nd quarter. Hyperion Asset Management Ltd now owns 68,762 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $64,325,000 after purchasing an additional 5,656 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

About Costco Wholesale

Costco Wholesale Corporation operates membership-based warehouse clubs that offer a broad selection of merchandise at generally low prices. Its products include groceries, fresh foods, appliances, electronics, apparel, furniture, and household goods, as well as its Kirkland Signature private-label line. The company also provides services such as gasoline stations, pharmacies, optical and hearing-aid centers, food courts, and travel offerings. Costco serves members through warehouses and online channels.