Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Down 1.4% – Here’s Why

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)’s stock price was down 1.4% during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $881.32 and last traded at $886.12. Approximately 3,603,961 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 58% from the average daily volume of 2,281,052 shares. The stock had previously closed at $899.01.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on COST shares. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,333.00 to $1,418.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 26th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,225.00 to $1,130.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,025.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on 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. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,025.07.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.6%

The stock has a market capitalization of $402.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 49.88, a PEG ratio of 5.54 and a beta of 0.98. The business has a 50-day moving average of $925.31 and a 200-day moving average of $960.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 1.03.

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

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $915.00, for a total transaction of $3,093,615.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 9,740 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,912,100. This represents a 25.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at 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 value of $2,232,312.00. Following the transaction, 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 position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 9,720 shares of company stock valued at $9,010,257. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Strategic Advocates LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the third quarter worth $134,000. Lantern Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth about $331,000. KERR FINANCIAL PLANNING Corp purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter valued at about $466,000. Kimelman & Baird LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.6% in the third quarter. Kimelman & Baird LLC now owns 63,075 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $58,384,000 after purchasing an additional 398 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Opes Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 12.5% during the 3rd quarter. Opes Wealth Management LLC now owns 243 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $225,000 after purchasing an additional 27 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.