Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Trading 0.5% Higher – Time to Buy?

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) shares were up 0.5% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $1,042.53 and last traded at $1,037.30. Approximately 342,214 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 1,855,624 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,031.97.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on COST shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Loop Capital upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,005.00 to $1,095.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. DA Davidson upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,000.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,021.93.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 2.6 %

The company has a market cap of $465.48 billion, a PE ratio of 61.57, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.84. The company’s 50 day moving average is $982.51 and its 200 day moving average is $937.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.25%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $1,338,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $280,046,000. Brooklyn FI LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $555,000. Fidelity D & D Bancorp Inc. grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 29.0% during the 4th quarter. Fidelity D & D Bancorp Inc. now owns 334 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $306,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Brucke Financial Inc. bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $446,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

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.