Beaton Management Co. Inc. Decreases Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Beaton Management Co. Inc. decreased its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 6.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,730 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 240 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up about 1.7% of Beaton Management Co. Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Beaton Management Co. Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $3,418,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Collier Financial bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Barrett & Company Inc. raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 59.3% in the 4th quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FSC Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,075.00 target price (up previously from $980.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $909.00 to $935.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. BMO Capital Markets upped 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. UBS Group lifted their price target 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. Finally, DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,021.93.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ:COST opened at $1,056.03 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $972.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $927.29. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $697.27 and a 52 week high of $1,078.23. The stock has a market cap of $468.77 billion, a PE ratio of 62.01, a P/E/G ratio of 6.26 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio 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.