California State Teachers Retirement System decreased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 706,197 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 18,288 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 0.8% of California State Teachers Retirement System's holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest position. California State Teachers Retirement System owned approximately 0.16% of Costco Wholesale worth $647,067,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 250.0% in the fourth 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. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Barrett & Company Inc. grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 59.3% in the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 43 shares of the retailer's stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 16 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.2 %
Shares of COST opened at $977.16 on Monday. 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 cap of $433.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.38, a PEG ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.95. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $966.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $956.28. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $715.32 and a 52-week high of $1,078.24.
Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last released 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 business 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%. Analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.
Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Investors of record on Friday, May 2nd will be issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.36%.
Insiders Place Their Bets
In other Costco Wholesale news, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total transaction of $3,351,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 41,077 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $38,242,687. The trade was a 8.06 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total value of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 9,600 shares of company stock valued at $9,140,195. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
COST has been the subject of several analyst reports. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,045.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Cfra Research upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,024.03.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on Costco Wholesale
Costco Wholesale Profile
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Free Report)
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.
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