Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Trading 0.7% Higher – Should You Buy?

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)’s share price traded up 0.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $930.50 and last traded at $927.37. 1,765,717 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 2% from the average session volume of 1,799,241 shares. The stock had previously closed at $921.37.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on COST shares. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,019.00 to $1,020.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Melius Research assumed coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $950.00 target price for the company. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $880.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $945.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $897.78. The company has a market cap of $411.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were given a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.50%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.25%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total transaction of $1,266,866.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,400 shares in the company, valued at $24,514,232. The trade was a 4.91 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 4,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $891.15, for a total transaction of $3,921,060.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,091,512.30. This represents a 30.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,816 shares of company stock worth $6,981,347 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Costco Wholesale

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the third quarter worth $29,000. Fairway Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 230.0% in the second quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 66 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the third quarter worth about $58,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 329.4% during the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 73 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Finally, VitalStone Financial LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $71,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

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.