Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Price Up 0.8%

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) rose 0.8% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $911.09 and last traded at $907.59. Approximately 410,930 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 1,946,675 shares. The stock had previously closed at $900.40.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on COST shares. Tigress Financial boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $870.00 to $975.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Bank of America increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $874.00 to $962.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $955.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 6th. DA Davidson reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $780.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $875.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $844.52.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.1 %

The company has a 50 day moving average of $861.57 and a 200-day moving average of $805.62. The stock has a market cap of $406.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.47 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.51%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total value of $298,035.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at $5,041,057.60. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the company’s 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 directly owns 11,775 shares in the company, valued at $10,320,787.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of 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. Insiders have sold a total of 4,974 shares of company stock valued at $4,252,856 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at $3,628,694,000. Wulff Hansen & CO. raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 99,208.6% during the 2nd quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,474,733 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,253,508,000 after acquiring an additional 1,473,248 shares in the last quarter. Global Assets Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the first quarter worth approximately $510,353,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings 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 valued at $710,802,000 after purchasing an additional 620,341 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 51,747.5% in the second quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 619,578 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $5,266,000 after purchasing an additional 618,383 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently 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.