Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Sold by Bfsg LLC

Bfsg LLC lessened its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 10,685 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 196 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for 1.1% of Bfsg LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Bfsg LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $9,790,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the third quarter worth about $42,896,000. Swedbank AB lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.5% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 443,747 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $393,391,000 after acquiring an additional 6,495 shares in the last quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.7% in the third quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. now owns 766 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $679,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Castleview Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.8% in the third quarter. Castleview Partners LLC now owns 545 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $483,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Everence Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 10.7% in the third quarter. Everence Capital Management Inc. now owns 10,323 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $9,152,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of COST stock opened at $1,056.03 on Wednesday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $697.27 and a 12-month high of $1,078.23. The firm has a market capitalization of $468.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.37 and a beta of 0.84. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $972.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $927.29. 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 company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 27.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,090.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Roth Mkm upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Robert W. Baird upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $840.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $940.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,021.93.

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.