Norway Savings Bank Has $3.40 Million Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Norway Savings Bank boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 3,707 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises about 1.9% of Norway Savings Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Norway Savings Bank’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $3,397,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Spartan Planning & Wealth Management bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $765,000. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 7.0% during the fourth quarter. Regent Peak Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,822 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,670,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 30.9% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 9,986 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $9,150,000 after purchasing an additional 2,355 shares during the last quarter. Bangor Savings Bank grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 1,103 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,011,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth approximately $244,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. StockNews.com cut Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,090.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ COST traded down $0.46 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $922.25. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,021,754 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,586,203. The firm has a market capitalization of $409.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.15, a P/E/G ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 0.84. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $944.01 and a 200 day moving average price of $897.06. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $654.03 and a one year high of $1,008.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 27.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 4,400 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Friday, October 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $891.15, for a total transaction of $3,921,060.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,091,512.30. The trade was a 30.13 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total value of $1,266,866.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 7,816 shares of company stock valued at $6,981,347 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.18% 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.