Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. Decreases Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. reduced its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 7.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 241,115 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 20,183 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises 3.1% of Comgest Global Investors S.A.S.’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. owned 0.05% of Costco Wholesale worth $213,753,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in COST. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 62.8% in the third quarter. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors now owns 2,417 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,143,000 after acquiring an additional 932 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 7.6% in the third quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC now owns 8,046 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,133,000 after acquiring an additional 568 shares in the last quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 66.9% in the third quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. now owns 3,088 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,738,000 after acquiring an additional 1,238 shares in the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 52.1% in 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 last quarter. Finally, Patton Fund Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth about $6,424,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total transaction of $1,793,420.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,210 shares in the company, valued at $9,155,409.10. The trade was a 16.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total transaction of $1,266,866.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 27,400 shares in the company, valued at $24,514,232. This represents a 4.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,016 shares of company stock valued at $9,826,115 over the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 1.8 %

COST traded down $16.82 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $907.07. 2,269,945 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,930,030. The company has a market cap of $401.90 billion, a PE ratio of 54.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.76 and a beta of 0.80. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $897.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $857.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.44. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $572.24 and a one year high of $962.00.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $79.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $79.91 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 31.05%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $4.86 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were given 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, November 1st. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 28.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $980.00 price target (up from $950.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, September 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $985.00 to $990.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $905.30.

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.