Cim Investment Management Inc. Lowers Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Cim Investment Management Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,770 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 24 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises 0.7% of Cim Investment Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest holding. Cim Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $2,354,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of COST. Wulff Hansen & CO. lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 99,208.6% during the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,474,733 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,253,508,000 after purchasing an additional 1,473,248 shares during the last quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter worth approximately $510,353,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 287.3% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 836,247 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $710,802,000 after buying an additional 620,341 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 51,747.5% during the second quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 619,578 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,266,000 after acquiring an additional 618,383 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3,647.1% during the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 567,641 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $374,688,000 after acquiring an additional 552,492 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 1.8 %

NASDAQ COST opened at $885.62 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $392.63 billion, a PE ratio of 54.87, a P/E/G ratio of 5.57 and a beta of 0.80. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $870.67 and its 200 day moving average is $816.15. Costco Wholesale Co. has a twelve month low of $540.23 and a twelve month high of $923.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $79.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.91 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 30.02%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $4.86 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 16.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 28.75%.

Insider Activity

In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,320,787.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the company’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 transaction, the insider now owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total transaction of $543,430.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 11,775 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,320,787.50. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,974 shares of company stock worth $4,252,856. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on COST. Gordon Haskett raised shares of Costco Wholesale from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $925.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $850.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday. Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $676.00 to $755.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $881.19.

Costco Wholesale 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.