Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Position Cut by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund trimmed its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 597,073 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 3,104 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises 0.7% of New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest position. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned about 0.13% of Costco Wholesale worth $547,080,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in COST. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 113,947.9% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,370,916 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,534,464,000 after purchasing an additional 7,364,453 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 100,422.3% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 796,137 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $729,476,000 after acquiring an additional 795,345 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 55.7% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,068,772 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $979,284,000 after purchasing an additional 382,367 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 75,894.4% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 338,935 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $300,473,000 after purchasing an additional 338,489 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,308,615 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,252,274,000 after buying an additional 324,973 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on COST shares. Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,040.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,000.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Raymond James increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,021.93.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 1.5 %

NASDAQ:COST opened at $1,056.03 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The company’s 50 day moving average is $972.43 and its 200-day moving average is $927.29. The firm has a market cap of $468.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.01, a P/E/G ratio of 6.37 and a beta of 0.84. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $697.27 and a 12 month high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

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

Costco Wholesale 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.