Carlson Capital Management Sells 45 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Carlson Capital Management lessened its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 800 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 45 shares during the period. Carlson Capital Management’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $733,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 2.3% in the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 54,717 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $50,405,000 after purchasing an additional 1,217 shares during the last quarter. Clarity Wealth Development LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $898,000. PDS Planning Inc boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 2,644 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,422,000 after buying an additional 36 shares during the period. Mystic Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $218,000. Finally, RD Lewis Holdings Inc. purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $1,788,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total transaction of $3,351,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 41,077 shares in the company, valued at $38,242,687. This represents a 8.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $916.61 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $406.88 billion, a PE ratio of 53.82, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.82. 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 company has a 50-day simple moving average of $989.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $945.08. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $697.27 and a one year high of $1,078.24.

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

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.51%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on COST shares. UBS Group lifted their price objective 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. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,030.43.

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.