Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Down 0.1% – Here’s What Happened

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) was down 0.1% on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $955.00 and last traded at $957.85. Approximately 454,303 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 1,860,190 shares. The stock had previously closed at $958.67.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on COST. Raymond James lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $940.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target 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. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.8 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $428.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.75, a PEG ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.84. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $953.06 and its 200-day moving average price is $905.62.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.25%.

Institutional Trading of Costco Wholesale

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,808,255 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,489,574,000 after purchasing an additional 32,074 shares in the last quarter. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 62.8% during the third quarter. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors now owns 2,417 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,143,000 after buying an additional 932 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 568 shares in the last quarter. Nwam LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter valued at $20,056,000. Finally, CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth $8,430,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% 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.