Valley Wealth Managers Inc. Increases Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Valley Wealth Managers Inc. raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 4.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,178 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the period. Valley Wealth Managers Inc.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,080,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,487,057 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,380,648,000 after purchasing an additional 162,191 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.6% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,308,615 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,252,274,000 after purchasing an additional 324,973 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 113,947.9% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,370,916 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,534,464,000 after purchasing an additional 7,364,453 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.8% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,399,127 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,013,394,000 after purchasing an additional 125,444 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 2.3% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,075,065 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,726,107,000 after purchasing an additional 70,561 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,075.00 price objective (up from $980.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. DA Davidson increased their target price 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. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,021.93.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of COST opened at $1,056.03 on Wednesday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $697.27 and a 1-year 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 6.37 and a beta of 0.84. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $972.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $927.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.25%.

Costco Wholesale Company 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.