Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. Sells 1,048 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. lowered its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 5.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,379 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,048 shares during the quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $14,772,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $3,628,694,000. Global Assets Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter worth about $510,353,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 287.3% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 836,247 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $710,802,000 after buying an additional 620,341 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3,647.1% in the fourth quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 567,641 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $374,688,000 after buying an additional 552,492 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,360,168 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $26,640,940,000 after acquiring an additional 485,051 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.6 %

NASDAQ:COST traded down $5.56 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $880.42. 75,016 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,948,218. 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’s 50-day simple moving average is $856.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $798.62. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $540.23 and a one year high of $918.93. The company has a market cap of $390.32 billion, a PE ratio of 54.89, a PEG ratio of 5.98 and a beta of 0.80.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on COST. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $775.00 to $800.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. TD Cowen increased their price objective 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. Argus boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $805.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. StockNews.com downgraded Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $815.00 to $873.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $826.04.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of Costco Wholesale 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 sale, the director now directly owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,041,057.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,320,787.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total value of $298,035.50. Following the transaction, the director now directly 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. In the last three months, insiders have sold 4,974 shares of company stock worth $4,252,856. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.