FUKOKU MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE Co Cuts Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

FUKOKU MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE Co cut its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 5.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,132 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 113 shares during the quarter. FUKOKU MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE Co’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,890,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Balboa Wealth Partners increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Balboa Wealth Partners now owns 4,621 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $4,097,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. ING Groep NV raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 24.4% during the third quarter. ING Groep NV now owns 129,143 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $114,488,000 after purchasing an additional 25,345 shares in the last quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 6.1% during the third quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 4,129 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,660,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 14.4% in the 3rd quarter. Omnia Family Wealth LLC now owns 325 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $288,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Metis Global Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 21,557 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $19,111,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 1.1 %

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $923.89 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.97. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $896.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $855.99. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $572.24 and a fifty-two week high of $962.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $409.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.76 and a beta of 0.80.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 31.05%. The firm had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $4.86 EPS. Costco Wholesale’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.00%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total value of $1,266,866.88. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,514,232. This trade represents a 4.91 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 3,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $888.99, for a total value of $2,844,768.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,630 shares in the company, valued at $7,671,983.70. The trade was a 27.05 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 11,016 shares of company stock valued at $9,826,115. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on COST shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $935.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Barclays boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $850.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. StockNews.com lowered Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Truist Financial lowered Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $873.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $980.00 target price (up from $950.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $905.30.

Costco Wholesale 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.