Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) is Smith Group Asset Management LLC’s 4th Largest Position

Smith Group Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 48,577 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 339 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up about 3.3% of Smith Group Asset Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position. Smith Group Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $44,510,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Fermata Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 1,968 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,745,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Sculati Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the 3rd quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,649 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,235,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,708 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,398,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Gill Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Gill Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,270 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,164,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Scott Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Scott Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,348 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,247,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on COST. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Jefferies Financial Group raised 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 note on Thursday, December 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,019.00 to $1,020.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,090.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.6 %

NASDAQ:COST opened at $979.01 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $691.50 and a 52 week high of $1,008.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $953.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $906.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98. The firm has a market cap of $434.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.84.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

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 dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.