Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Price Down 0.7% – Here’s Why

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)’s stock price dropped 0.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $1,029.50 and last traded at $1,040.39. Approximately 569,061 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 69% from the average daily volume of 1,828,094 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,047.75.

Analyst Ratings Changes

COST has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,000.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target 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. Finally, 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. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,021.93.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 2.2 %

The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $987.79 and its two-hundred day moving average is $941.75. The firm has a market cap of $454.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 60.24, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.84.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.25%.

Institutional Trading of Costco Wholesale

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of COST. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,201,610 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $38,668,069,000 after purchasing an additional 455,043 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,739,175 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,901,249,000 after purchasing an additional 252,118 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,457,824 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,665,921,000 after buying an additional 149,209 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $5,182,316,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 12.6% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,257,809 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $4,817,573,000 after buying an additional 587,303 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.