Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Shares Sold by FUKOKU MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE Co

FUKOKU MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE Co lowered its holdings in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 3.5% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 1,956 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 70 shares during the period. FUKOKU MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE Co’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,936,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Howe & Rusling Inc. raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.2% during the 2nd quarter. Howe & Rusling Inc. now owns 9,576 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $9,480,000 after purchasing an additional 295 shares during the period. 17 Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 2nd quarter worth $209,000. Weaver Consulting Group increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.3% in the second quarter. Weaver Consulting Group now owns 1,505 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,490,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the second quarter valued at $129,000. Finally, NFP Retirement Inc. lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 12.0% in the second quarter. NFP Retirement Inc. now owns 1,103 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,092,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.5%

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $890.60 on Thursday. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12-month low of $871.71 and a 12-month high of $1,078.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $394.70 billion, a PE ratio of 48.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.98. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $930.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $964.43.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its earnings results on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.81 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $86.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $86.01 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.09% and a net margin of 2.94%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $5.15 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 14th. Investors of record on Friday, October 31st were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 31st. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.56%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently weighed in on COST shares. BTIG Research began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, October 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $1,115.00 price objective on the stock. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,130.00 to $1,050.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, November 3rd. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, September 18th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Mizuho reduced their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $950.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,140.00 to $1,134.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Eighteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,025.07.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $915.00, for a total value of $3,093,615.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,912,100. The trade was a 25.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP William Richard Wilcox sold 2,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $930.13, for a total transaction of $2,232,312.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 2,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,860,260. The trade was a 54.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 9,720 shares of company stock valued at $9,010,257 in the last three months. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.