Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Position Boosted by Capital Market Strategies LLC

Capital Market Strategies LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 4.2% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,301 shares of the retailer’s stock after buying an additional 133 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 1.7% of Capital Market Strategies LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Capital Market Strategies LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $3,025,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Boltwood Capital Management raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 40.2% in the 4th quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 1,260 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,154,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 54.8% in the fourth quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 4,800 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,398,000 after buying an additional 1,700 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 35.7% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 30,220 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $27,720,000 after acquiring an additional 7,944 shares in the last quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 15.4% in the fourth quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 11,913 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $10,916,000 after purchasing an additional 1,590 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Modus Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. Modus Advisors LLC now owns 1,777 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,629,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ COST traded up $6.11 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $922.69. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 957,199 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,436,813. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.97. The stock has a market cap of $409.58 billion, a PE ratio of 54.18, a PEG ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 0.84. The company’s 50-day moving average is $943.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $896.64. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $654.03 and a fifty-two week high of $1,008.25.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

COST has been the topic of a number of research reports. StockNews.com downgraded Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Roth Mkm lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Loop Capital upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,005.00 to $1,095.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Redburn Atlantic cut shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the company from $860.00 to $890.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 10th. Nine investment 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 has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,013.59.

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.