Weatherly Asset Management L. P. Reduces Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Weatherly Asset Management L. P. cut its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,897 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 405 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises 2.3% of Weatherly Asset Management L. P.’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Weatherly Asset Management L. P.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $26,478,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the third quarter worth approximately $42,896,000. VitalStone Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter valued at $71,000. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth $156,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter worth $213,000. Finally, Creative Planning lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 224,169 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $194,245,000 after purchasing an additional 11,678 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.3 %

NASDAQ COST opened at $1,058.34 on Wednesday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $963.01 and a 200 day moving average of $916.76. The company has a market capitalization of $469.80 billion, a PE ratio of 62.15, a P/E/G ratio of 6.26 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1 year low of $697.27 and a 1 year high of $1,066.00.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 27.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $840.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,040.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,021.93.

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.