Achmea Investment Management B.V. Decreases Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Achmea Investment Management B.V. trimmed its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 68,774 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,015 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 1.0% of Achmea Investment Management B.V.’s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Achmea Investment Management B.V.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $63,015,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 250.0% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Collier Financial purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on COST shares. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,000.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Roth Mkm raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. DA Davidson raised their target price 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. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,030.43.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST opened at $927.08 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $411.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.81. Costco Wholesale Co. has a twelve month low of $697.27 and a twelve month high of $1,078.24. 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 has a 50 day moving average of $990.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $944.52.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $63.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. As a group, analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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 was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.50%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.09%.

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.