Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Up 0.1%

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) was up 0.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $900.18 and last traded at $897.73. Approximately 178,109 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 91% from the average daily volume of 1,936,651 shares. The stock had previously closed at $897.27.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $775.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Citigroup upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $710.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $780.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, September 6th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $910.00 to $915.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Roth Mkm reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $676.00 price objective (up previously from $650.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $844.52.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.1 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $862.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $808.65. The firm has a market capitalization of $398.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.56 and a beta of 0.80.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value of $1,266,300.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total transaction of $1,266,300.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total value of $437,025.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,015,745. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,974 shares of company stock worth $4,252,856 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 557.1% during the 2nd quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the last quarter. Vima LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, DSM Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.