Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by GHP Investment Advisors Inc.

GHP Investment Advisors Inc. cut its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 5.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 11,584 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 658 shares during the quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $10,614,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of COST. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $55,000. Finally, Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $58,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on COST shares. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price target for the company. Roth Mkm increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Loop Capital increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,005.00 to $1,095.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,090.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,021.93.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.7 %

NASDAQ COST opened at $1,043.81 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $959.83 and its 200-day simple moving average is $912.64. The stock has a market cap of $463.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 61.29, a PEG ratio of 5.84 and a beta of 0.84. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $697.27 and a 52 week high of $1,063.00. 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 Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 27.25%.

About Costco Wholesale

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.