Woodward Diversified Capital LLC Lowers Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Woodward Diversified Capital LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 16.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 233 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 45 shares during the period. Woodward Diversified Capital LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $213,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in COST. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. Barrett & Company Inc. grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 59.3% during the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 16 shares during the last quarter. FSC Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at about $55,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.7 %

NASDAQ:COST opened at $1,043.81 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $697.27 and a one year high of $1,063.00. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $961.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $914.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $463.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 61.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.26 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 27.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,065.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,021.93.

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.