Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Price Down 3.2% After Insider Selling

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) shares were down 3.2% during trading on Thursday after an insider sold shares in the company. The company traded as low as $900.84 and last traded at $897.32. Approximately 855,327 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 53% from the average daily volume of 1,806,611 shares. The stock had previously closed at $927.08.

Specifically, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total value of $3,351,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 41,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,242,687. This trade represents a 8.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on COST shares. Sanford C. Bernstein restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,075.00 price target (up previously from $980.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $995.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target 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. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,030.43.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

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 company has a market capitalization of $401.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.08, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.81. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $989.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $944.22.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $63.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.51%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.09%.

Institutional Trading of Costco Wholesale

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Investment Management Corp VA ADV bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 250.0% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.