E Fund Management Co. Ltd. Grows Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

E Fund Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 37.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 10,206 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,773 shares during the period. E Fund Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $9,351,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Candriam S.C.A. increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 6.9% during the fourth quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 58,453 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $53,559,000 after acquiring an additional 3,767 shares during the last quarter. Chung Wu Investment Group LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at $321,000. Schrum Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at $406,000. Bellevue Asset Management LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Bellevue Asset Management LLC now owns 6,943 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,362,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ethos Financial Group LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 7.1% during the fourth quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC now owns 1,568 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,439,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $1,047.75 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $987.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $941.75. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $465.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 61.52, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.84. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1 year low of $697.27 and a 1 year high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was 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%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on COST. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $940.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Evercore ISI restated a “hold” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,090.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,021.93.

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.