Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) is C WorldWide Group Holding A S’s 8th Largest Position

C WorldWide Group Holding A S decreased its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 7.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 410,719 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 34,117 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up about 4.6% of C WorldWide Group Holding A S’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. C WorldWide Group Holding A S’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $376,329,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,487,057 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,380,648,000 after purchasing an additional 162,191 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,308,615 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,252,274,000 after acquiring an additional 324,973 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,399,127 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,013,394,000 after acquiring an additional 125,444 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,075,065 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,726,107,000 after acquiring an additional 70,561 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 3,034,491 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,690,138,000 after acquiring an additional 78,590 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Evercore ISI restated a “hold” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,075.00 price objective (up from $980.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,000.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Raymond James lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $840.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,021.93.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COST opened at $1,035.03 on Monday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $975.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $932.24. The company has a market cap of $459.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 60.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $697.27 and a 52 week high of $1,078.23.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.45%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.25%.

Costco Wholesale 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.