Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Trading 1% Higher – Here’s Why

Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) were up 1% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $957.72 and last traded at $954.96. Approximately 542,548 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 72% from the average daily volume of 1,940,489 shares. The stock had previously closed at $945.78.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,035.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Loop Capital cut their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Raymond James lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,029.00.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $988.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $947.48. The company has a market cap of $428.19 billion, a PE ratio of 56.67, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.82. 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 (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.09 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $63.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.48%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.09%.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Gary Millerchip sold 1,100 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $940.01, for a total transaction of $1,034,011.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 11,165 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,495,211.65. This trade represents a 8.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total value of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,600 shares of company stock worth $5,215,915 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Lederer & Associates Investment Counsel CA raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Lederer & Associates Investment Counsel CA now owns 2,065 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,953,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. Waller Financial Planning Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the first quarter valued at approximately $281,000. Kera Capital Partners Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter worth approximately $220,000. Marcum Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 7.6% during the 1st quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 887 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $839,000 after buying an additional 63 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Global Wealth Strategies & Associates grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 25.8% in the 1st quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 366 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $346,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Company 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.