Grimes & Company Inc. Raises Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Grimes & Company Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,409 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 38 shares during the period. Grimes & Company Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,291,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of COST. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $55,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter valued at $58,000. Finally, Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $58,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on COST. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. UBS Group boosted their price target 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. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price objective for the company. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $939.68 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $417.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $951.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $903.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. 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 company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. 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.