First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. Sells 437 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. trimmed its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 21,053 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 437 shares during the quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $19,290,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,487,057 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,380,648,000 after purchasing an additional 162,191 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,308,615 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,252,274,000 after buying an additional 324,973 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 113,947.9% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,370,916 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,534,464,000 after buying an additional 7,364,453 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,399,127 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,013,394,000 after buying an additional 125,444 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 3,075,065 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,726,107,000 after buying an additional 70,561 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $939.68 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $417.12 billion, a PE ratio of 55.18, a P/E/G ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.84. 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 50-day simple moving average of $951.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $903.84. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $675.96 and a one year high of $1,008.25.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $1,065.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price objective on the stock. Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Loop Capital increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,005.00 to $1,095.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,013.59.

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.