Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Price Down 0.2% – Here’s Why

Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) dropped 0.2% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $954.02 and last traded at $956.82. Approximately 211,213 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 1,940,748 shares. The stock had previously closed at $958.82.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,050.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Roth Mkm boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective 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, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,011.74.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.3 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $938.61 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $893.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $424.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.16, a P/E/G ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 33.19%. The firm had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $79.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $4.86 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.83 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.49%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 27.25%.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 4,400 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $891.15, for a total transaction of $3,921,060.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,091,512.30. The trade was a 30.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $888.99, for a total value of $2,844,768.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,671,983.70. This trade represents a 27.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 11,016 shares of company stock worth $9,826,115. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $58,000. Fairway Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 230.0% during the second quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 66 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 329.4% in the third quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 73 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $65,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Finally, VitalStone Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth $71,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

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.