Costco Wholesale Co. Same Store Sales Increase by 10% in July, Stock Rises by 0% (NASDAQ:COST)

Costco Wholesale’s (NASDAQ:COST) same-store sales climbed 10% during the month of July. Costco Wholesale’s shares rose by 0% in the first full-day of trading following the report.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on COST. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Citigroup increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $710.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $975.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Barclays increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $765.00 to $830.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $874.00 to $962.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $824.50.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total transaction of $1,266,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 12,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,545,746.40. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total transaction of $1,266,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total transaction of $298,035.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at $5,041,057.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,970 shares of company stock valued at $4,249,526 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $877.35 on Friday. Costco Wholesale has a 52 week low of $530.56 and a 52 week high of $896.67. The company has a market capitalization of $388.96 billion, a PE ratio of 54.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.73 and a beta of 0.78. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $847.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $780.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.70 by $0.08. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 30.02%. The company had revenue of $58.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $58.16 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.43 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Costco Wholesale will post 15.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were given a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.75%.

Institutional Trading of Costco Wholesale

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Arkos Global Advisors increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.4% during the second quarter. Arkos Global Advisors now owns 591 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $502,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $14,809,000. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.2% in the second quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 554 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $471,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.5% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,650,562 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,102,941,000 after buying an additional 88,550 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.2% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 312,946 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $266,001,000 after buying an additional 6,750 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.