Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Stake Increased by Insight Inv LLC

Insight Inv LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 21.2% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 714 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the quarter. Insight Inv LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $654,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the third quarter worth $29,000. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at about $55,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the third quarter worth about $58,000. Finally, Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $58,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $1,065.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $939.68 on Monday. 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 $417.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.18, a PEG ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.84. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $675.96 and a 1-year high of $1,008.25. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $951.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $903.84.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 27.25%.

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.