LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI Lowers Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI cut its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 48.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 612 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 572 shares during the quarter. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $561,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.7% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,487,057 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,380,648,000 after purchasing an additional 162,191 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,308,615 shares of the retailer's stock worth $8,252,274,000 after buying an additional 324,973 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 113,947.9% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,370,916 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $6,534,464,000 after buying an additional 7,364,453 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 2.5% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,650,562 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $3,102,941,000 after acquiring an additional 88,550 shares during the period. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.8% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 3,399,127 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,013,394,000 after acquiring an additional 125,444 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:COST traded up $9.57 on Friday, reaching $936.94. 2,764,527 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,956,132. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $667.64 and a 52 week high of $1,008.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $947.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $898.61. The stock has a market capitalization of $415.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 0.84.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is 27.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

COST has been the subject of several recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $1,016.00 price target for the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Roth Mkm upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $1,075.00 price target (up from $980.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,013.59.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total value of $1,266,866.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 27,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at $24,514,232. This trade represents a 4.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total transaction of $1,793,420.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,155,409.10. The trade was a 16.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.