Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Price Down 0.4% – Time to Sell?

Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) were down 0.4% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $1,068.01 and last traded at $1,072.63. Approximately 398,902 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 1,883,499 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,076.86.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on COST. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,090.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. DA Davidson boosted 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, February 6th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,000.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $840.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,021.93.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $475.79 billion, a PE ratio of 62.94, a P/E/G ratio of 6.26 and a beta of 0.84. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $969.49 and its 200-day moving average price is $922.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

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 paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.25%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of COST. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,808,255 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,489,574,000 after buying an additional 32,074 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 7.6% during the third quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC now owns 8,046 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,133,000 after acquiring an additional 568 shares during the last quarter. Nwam LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the third quarter valued at about $20,056,000. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $8,430,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 15.0% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,662 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,020,000 after purchasing an additional 1,001 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.