First Bank & Trust Cuts Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

First Bank & Trust reduced its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,952 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 155 shares during the period. First Bank & Trust’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $3,912,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Investment Management Corp VA ADV purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Bulwark Capital Corp purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 900.0% in the first quarter. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC now owns 40 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period. eCIO Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the first quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Finally, Aspect Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 24.4% in the first quarter. Aspect Partners LLC now owns 56 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

COST stock opened at $960.10 on Tuesday. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 52-week low of $867.16 and a 52-week high of $1,078.23. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. The stock has a market cap of $425.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.45 and a beta of 0.97. The business has a fifty day moving average of $959.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $973.69.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 1st were issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 29.50%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on COST. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Finally, Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,056.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total value of $3,899,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 5,774 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,629,419.04. This trade represents a 40.92% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total value of $536,060.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 11,531 shares in the company, valued at $11,300,380. This trade represents a 4.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,147 shares of company stock valued at $5,031,130 over the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.