Short Interest in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Rises By 7.0%

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) was the target of a significant growth in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 7,330,000 shares, a growth of 7.0% from the August 15th total of 6,850,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,890,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.9 days.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Costco Wholesale stock traded down $4.75 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $892.52. 1,336,578 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,943,247. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $862.32 and a two-hundred day moving average of $808.65. Costco Wholesale has a twelve month low of $540.23 and a twelve month high of $923.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a market cap of $395.68 billion, a P/E 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were paid a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 28.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COST has been the topic of several analyst reports. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $955.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $915.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Tigress Financial upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $870.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. Finally, Gordon Haskett raised shares of Costco Wholesale from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $925.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $844.52.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total transaction of $1,266,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total transaction of $1,266,300.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total transaction of $298,035.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,041,057.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 4,974 shares of company stock worth $4,252,856. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Zhang Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.8% in the 1st quarter. Zhang Financial LLC now owns 1,010 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $740,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Strong Tower Advisory Services boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 7.9% in the 1st quarter. Strong Tower Advisory Services now owns 1,867 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,346,000 after purchasing an additional 137 shares in the last quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,871,000. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 52.1% during the 2nd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 7,645 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,499,000 after buying an additional 2,620 shares during the period. Finally, Main Street Financial Solutions LLC boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 22.8% during the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 3,533 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,003,000 after buying an additional 656 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.