Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. Sells 8,290 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 10.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 71,850 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 8,290 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 3.0% of Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Nippon Life Global Investors Americas Inc.'s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $65,834,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG now owns 44,184 shares of the retailer's stock worth $40,495,000 after acquiring an additional 1,428 shares during the period. Optivise Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Optivise Advisory Services LLC now owns 597 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $547,000 after purchasing an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Dimensions Group Ltd. purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $348,000. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 179,045 shares of the retailer's stock worth $164,059,000 after buying an additional 5,829 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 141.4% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 41,501 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $38,026,000 after buying an additional 24,310 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

COST stock traded down $3.39 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $975.84. 2,106,985 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,026,353. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $969.97 and a 200-day simple moving average of $954.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $432.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 57.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.95. Costco Wholesale Co. has a twelve month low of $714.41 and a twelve month high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $63.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders 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 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 30.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Mizuho began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, April 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price objective for the company. Barclays upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, March 10th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Cfra Research upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $1,024.03.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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. The trade was a 11.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total value 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 $38,242,687. This represents a 8.06 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 9,600 shares of company stock valued at $9,140,195 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale 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.