Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Up 1% - Here's What Happened

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report)'s stock price was up 1% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $957.72 and last traded at $954.96. Approximately 542,548 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 72% from the average daily volume of 1,940,489 shares. The stock had previously closed at $945.78.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Loop Capital decreased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,135.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 7th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Barclays upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on 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 twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,029.00.

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Costco Wholesale Price Performance

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 capitalization of $429.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 56.79, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.82. The firm's fifty day moving average is $988.67 and its 200 day moving average is $947.48.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last issued 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. As a group, analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.48%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is currently 27.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, 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 transaction of $830,304.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at $6,445,926.72. This trade represents a 11.41 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Gary Millerchip sold 1,100 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $940.01, for a total value of $1,034,011.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 11,165 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,495,211.65. This represents a 8.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 5,600 shares of company stock valued at $5,215,915 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Costco Wholesale

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. United Bank raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 7.5% in the third quarter. United Bank now owns 5,962 shares of the retailer's stock worth $5,285,000 after buying an additional 416 shares in the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 182.1% in the 3rd quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 409 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $363,000 after acquiring an additional 264 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter valued at $7,203,000. Ingalls & Snyder LLC raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 11.8% in the 3rd quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC now owns 1,709 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,515,000 after acquiring an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Motley Fool Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 36,695 shares of the retailer's stock worth $32,195,000 after purchasing an additional 379 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently 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.