Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. Lowers Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co. reduced its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 11.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,870 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,452 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for 1.9% of Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co.’s holdings, making the stock its 18th largest position. Bank of Nova Scotia Trust Co.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $18,206,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 250.0% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Collier Financial purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Barrett & Company Inc. boosted its position 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 purchasing an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 2.8 %

COST opened at $994.50 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm has a market cap of $441.24 billion, a P/E ratio of 58.40, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.95. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $702.00 and a 52 week high of $1,078.24. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $975.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $952.32.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its 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). The firm had revenue of $63.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. On average, equities analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd will be paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. This is an increase from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 2nd. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.09%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Gary Millerchip sold 1,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $940.01, for a total transaction of $1,034,011.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 11,165 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,495,211.65. This represents a 8.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total value of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,987 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This trade represents a 11.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 5,600 shares of company stock worth $5,215,915 in the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COST has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Cfra Research raised Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Loop Capital reduced their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,045.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,024.03.

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.