Morgan Stanley Raises Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Price Target to $1,150.00

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) had its target price lifted by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $950.00 to $1,150.00 in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an “overweight” rating on the retailer’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 16.24% from the stock’s previous close.

COST has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Roth Mkm boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Melius Research initiated coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $950.00 price target for the company. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $988.46.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.1 %

NASDAQ:COST opened at $989.35 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $926.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $885.20. Costco Wholesale has a fifty-two week low of $630.30 and a fifty-two week high of $1,007.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $438.36 billion, a PE ratio of 58.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.05 and a beta of 0.82.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 31.05%. The firm had revenue of $79.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $79.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $4.86 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Costco Wholesale will post 17.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 4,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, October 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $891.15, for a total value of $3,921,060.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,202 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,091,512.30. This represents a 30.13 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of the firm’s 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 owns 27,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,514,232. This trade represents a 4.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,016 shares of company stock valued at $9,826,115 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Legacy Wealth Management LLC MS lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.7% during the third quarter. Legacy Wealth Management LLC MS now owns 4,033 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,575,000 after buying an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 12.8% in the 3rd quarter. DGS Capital Management LLC now owns 756 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $671,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. FFG Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. FFG Partners LLC now owns 23,814 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $21,112,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the period. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $9,539,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.3% during the third quarter. Garde Capital Inc. now owns 3,954 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,506,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.