Summit Global Investments Sells 1,525 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Summit Global Investments trimmed its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 17.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,242 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 1,525 shares during the period. Summit Global Investments' holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $6,636,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Swedbank AB boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.5% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 443,747 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $393,391,000 after acquiring an additional 6,495 shares during the period. United Bank grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 7.5% in the 3rd 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. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 17.8% in the 3rd quarter. Integrated Investment Consultants LLC now owns 1,184 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $1,049,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares during the period. Eagle Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 16.0% in the 3rd quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc. now owns 15,652 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $14,772,000 after acquiring an additional 2,156 shares during the period. Finally, 49 Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 36.5% during the 3rd quarter. 49 Wealth Management LLC now owns 962 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $853,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Remove Ads

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, March 7th. Evercore ISI lifted 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. Roth Mkm lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,029.00.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock traded up $4.22 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $930.26. 1,621,482 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,823,339. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $987.58 and a 200-day moving average price of $945.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $412.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.82. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $697.27 and a 1-year high of $1,078.24.

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

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th were given a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.50%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is 27.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 41,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,242,687. This trade represents a 8.06 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 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.