Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Stake Cut by River Street Advisors LLC

River Street Advisors LLC reduced its holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,122 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 64 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises about 1.0% of River Street Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest holding. River Street Advisors LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,944,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 113,947.9% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,370,916 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,534,464,000 after buying an additional 7,364,453 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 55.7% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,068,772 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $979,284,000 after purchasing an additional 382,367 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 75,894.4% in the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 338,935 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $300,473,000 after purchasing an additional 338,489 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,308,615 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $8,252,274,000 after purchasing an additional 324,973 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.7% in the 3rd 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. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 2.6 %

COST opened at $1,005.83 on Tuesday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a twelve month low of $697.27 and a twelve month high of $1,009.61. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $954.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $908.28. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $446.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.06, a P/E/G ratio of 5.84 and a beta of 0.84.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.46%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is 27.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have issued reports on COST shares. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,090.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Loop Capital lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,005.00 to $1,095.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Roth Mkm lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,013.59.

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.