Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Down 0.3% – Here’s What Happened

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) shares were down 0.3% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $949.69 and last traded at $960.89. Approximately 3,240,929 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 68% from the average daily volume of 1,934,416 shares. The stock had previously closed at $964.01.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Gordon Haskett raised shares of Costco Wholesale from an “accumulate” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $925.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $955.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price target for the company. Melius Research started coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $950.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $908.81.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 1.0 %

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $905.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $869.42. The company has a market cap of $426.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 58.03, a P/E/G ratio of 5.93 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $79.91 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 31.05%. The business’s revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.86 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.48%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 28.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total value of $1,793,420.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,210 shares in the company, valued at $9,155,409.10. This represents a 16.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total value of $1,266,866.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 27,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,514,232. This trade represents a 4.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 11,016 shares of company stock valued at $9,826,115. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 30.2% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 25,231 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $22,368,000 after buying an additional 5,853 shares during the last quarter. Blankinship & Foster LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 5,552.6% in the 3rd quarter. Blankinship & Foster LLC now owns 18,258 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $16,186,000 after acquiring an additional 17,935 shares in the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 214.7% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 10,459 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $9,272,000 after purchasing an additional 7,135 shares during the last quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the third quarter valued at about $384,000. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 14.3% during the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 12,008 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $10,645,000 after purchasing an additional 1,503 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.