Parnassus Investments LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Parnassus Investments LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 6.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 710,831 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 51,368 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up approximately 1.4% of Parnassus Investments LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 29th largest position. Parnassus Investments LLC owned approximately 0.16% of Costco Wholesale worth $651,313,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in COST. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 250.0% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Collier Financial purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 3.9 %

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $890.62 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $395.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 52.30, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98. The company has a fifty day moving average of $990.05 and a 200 day moving average of $944.14. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $697.27 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.24.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.09 by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $63.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 32.31% and a net margin of 2.93%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 27.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital decreased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report 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 company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,075.00 target price (up from $980.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price 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. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,030.43.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total transaction of $3,351,600.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 41,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,242,687. This represents a 8.06 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.