Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by Hartline Investment Corp

Hartline Investment Corp lessened its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,978 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 50 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises about 1.0% of Hartline Investment Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding. Hartline Investment Corp’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $9,143,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,808,255 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,489,574,000 after purchasing an additional 32,074 shares during the last quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 7.6% in the third quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC now owns 8,046 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,133,000 after buying an additional 568 shares during the last quarter. Nwam LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the third quarter valued at $20,056,000. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $8,430,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 15.0% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,662 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $7,020,000 after acquiring an additional 1,001 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of COST stock opened at $1,058.34 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $469.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.15, a PEG ratio of 6.26 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 stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $963.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $916.76. Costco Wholesale Co. has a twelve month low of $697.27 and a twelve month high of $1,066.00.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

COST has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Cowen boosted their target price 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 target price for the company. DA Davidson upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $1,065.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.