Banco Santander S.A. Sells 1,084 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Banco Santander S.A. cut its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 12.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,479 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,084 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $6,853,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the third quarter worth $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 250.0% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Collier Financial bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on COST. Loop Capital cut their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. TD Cowen raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,090.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $940.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,029.00.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 6.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $964.31 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $697.27 and a 12-month high of $1,078.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $989.69 and its 200-day moving average price is $943.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $428.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.82.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.07). Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. The company had revenue of $63.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $63.02 billion. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.09%.

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.