Costco Wholesale's (COST) Outperform Rating Reiterated at Oppenheimer

Oppenheimer reaffirmed their outperform rating on shares of Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $1,075.00 target price on the retailer's stock, up from their prior target price of $980.00.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. Loop Capital boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,005.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $950.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $1,016.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $931.89.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.6 %

NASDAQ COST traded up $5.54 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $993.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,517,420 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,923,007. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.44. Costco Wholesale has a 52-week low of $618.76 and a 52-week high of $997.71. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $917.82 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $880.63. The firm has a market capitalization of $440.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 59.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.05 and a beta of 0.82.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $79.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $79.91 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.90% and a return on equity of 31.05%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $4.86 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale will post 17.74 EPS for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were given a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.47%. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is 28.00%.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total value of $1,793,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,210 shares in the company, valued at $9,155,409.10. The trade was a 16.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $888.99, for a total value of $2,844,768.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,671,983.70. The trade was a 27.05 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 11,016 shares of company stock worth $9,826,115. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 557.1% in the second quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 73.5% during the second quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 59 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $50,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 230.0% in the 2nd quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 66 shares of the retailer's stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is 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.