Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Trading 0.7% Higher – Still a Buy?

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) was up 0.7% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $930.50 and last traded at $927.37. Approximately 1,765,717 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 2% from the average daily volume of 1,799,241 shares. The stock had previously closed at $921.37.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on COST. StockNews.com cut shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Tigress Financial reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $1,065.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, October 17th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,090.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,075.00 price objective (up from $980.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 1.0 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $415.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.02, a P/E/G ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $947.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $898.61.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.50%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.25%.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total transaction of $1,266,866.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,514,232. This represents a 4.91 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total value of $1,793,420.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,155,409.10. The trade was a 16.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Fairway Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 230.0% during the second quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 66 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the third quarter valued at $58,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 329.4% during the third quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 73 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Finally, VitalStone Financial LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter valued at about $71,000. 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.