Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Price Target Raised to $755.00

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) had its target price raised by Roth Mkm from $676.00 to $755.00 in a report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the retailer’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $710.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a neutral rating in a report on Friday, May 31st. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Bank of America lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $874.00 to $962.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Gordon Haskett raised Costco Wholesale from an accumulate rating to a buy rating and set a $925.00 target price for the company in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research note on Friday. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $883.04.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $886.52 on Friday. Costco Wholesale has a fifty-two week low of $540.23 and a fifty-two week high of $923.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a current ratio of 0.94. The company has a market cap of $393.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.47 and a beta of 0.80. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $871.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $818.37.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $79.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $79.91 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.02% and a net margin of 2.83%. Costco Wholesale’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.86 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that Costco Wholesale will post 16.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were given a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.75%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total value of $437,025.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,015,745. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total value of $298,035.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at $5,041,057.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total value of $437,025.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,015,745. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 4,974 shares of company stock worth $4,252,856 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 557.1% in the second quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Vima LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Bank & Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $48,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.