Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by Goelzer Investment Management Inc.

Goelzer Investment Management Inc. cut its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,677 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 146 shares during the period. Goelzer Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $8,867,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Renaissance Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the second quarter valued at $4,202,000. Beck Bode LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Beck Bode LLC now owns 15,957 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $13,563,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.2% during the second quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 554 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $471,000 after buying an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the second quarter valued at approximately $14,809,000. Finally, Arkos Global Advisors raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.4% in the second quarter. Arkos Global Advisors now owns 591 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $502,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on COST shares. Raymond James lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $909.00 to $935.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Roth Mkm raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,075.00 price objective (up previously from $980.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $940.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of COST stock opened at $939.68 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $951.57 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $903.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $417.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.18, a P/E/G ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.84. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $675.96 and a 12 month high of $1,008.25.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.