Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. Acquires New Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Richard C. Young & CO. LTD. bought a new position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 241 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $221,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sculati Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the third quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,649 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,235,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,708 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,398,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Gill Capital Partners LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Gill Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,270 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,164,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. Scott Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Scott Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,348 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,247,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lantz Financial LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 645 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $591,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $1,043.81 on Monday. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $961.27 and its 200 day moving average price is $914.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market cap of $463.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 61.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.26 and a beta of 0.84. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1 year low of $697.27 and a 1 year high of $1,063.00.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on COST. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. DA Davidson upped their price objective 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. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,040.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target 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. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,021.93.

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.