Jag Capital Management LLC Sells 14,698 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Jag Capital Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 52.7% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 13,179 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 14,698 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up 1.7% of Jag Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Jag Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $12,076,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in COST. Swedbank AB grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 443,747 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $393,391,000 after acquiring an additional 6,495 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 123,292 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $110,861,000 after acquiring an additional 9,447 shares during the period. Lansing Street Advisors grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 31.4% during the 3rd quarter. Lansing Street Advisors now owns 339 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $300,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the period. Kanawha Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Kanawha Capital Management LLC now owns 16,044 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $14,223,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares during the period. Finally, Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Roman Butler Fullerton & Co. now owns 2,930 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,621,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on COST shares. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,000.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,021.93.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COST opened at $1,046.85 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $984.45 and its 200 day moving average is $939.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $464.70 billion, a PE ratio of 61.47, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $697.27 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were given a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.