Rhumbline Advisers Sells 15,261 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Rhumbline Advisers trimmed its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 884,288 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 15,261 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises about 0.7% of Rhumbline Advisers’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Rhumbline Advisers’ holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $810,246,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Collier Financial bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Barrett & Company Inc. increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 59.3% during the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FSC Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $940.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 target price for the company. Finally, Raymond James boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,021.93.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of COST stock opened at $1,071.85 on Friday. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $969.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $922.35. The company has a market cap of $475.79 billion, a PE ratio of 62.94, a PEG ratio of 6.26 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $697.27 and a 12-month high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is presently 27.25%.

Costco Wholesale 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.