Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) EVP Russell D. Miller Sells 785 Shares

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) EVP Russell D. Miller sold 785 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $722.86, for a total transaction of $567,445.10. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,228,600. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of COST stock traded down $3.94 on Thursday, hitting $711.25. The stock had a trading volume of 1,845,885 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,098,199. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52-week low of $476.75 and a 52-week high of $787.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $315.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.85, a P/E/G ratio of 4.77 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.93. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $730.83 and its 200-day moving average is $659.23.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.62 by $0.09. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.73% and a return on equity of 28.80%. The company had revenue of $58.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $59.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.30 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.65%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $760.00 to $805.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $665.00 to $749.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $800.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Loop Capital lowered their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $820.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Gordon Haskett downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to an “accumulate” rating and set a $775.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $691.28.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in COST. Richelieu Gestion SA acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 200.0% during the fourth quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 45 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Aspect Partners LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.