Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Down 2.9% – Time to Sell?

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) traded down 2.9% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $888.08 and last traded at $895.86. 3,745,651 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 64% from the average session volume of 2,279,616 shares. The stock had previously closed at $922.26.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on COST shares. BTIG Research began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, October 14th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $1,115.00 target price on the stock. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Thursday, September 18th. They issued a “peer perform” rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of 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. Gordon Haskett cut their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, December 1st. Finally, Mizuho dropped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $950.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,023.41.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The firm has a market capitalization of $396.50 billion, a PE ratio of 49.13, a PEG ratio of 6.08 and a beta of 1.00. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $919.68 and its 200 day moving average price is $955.81.

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

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

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 $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 31st. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.6%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.56%.

Insider Activity

In other Costco Wholesale news, insider Tiffany Marie Barbre sold 1,239 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $934.62, for a total value of $1,157,994.18. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 5,155 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,817,966.10. This trade represents a 19.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 2,700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $935.68, for a total value of $2,526,336.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 6,851 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,410,343.68. The trade was a 28.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 9,720 shares of company stock worth $9,010,257 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Costco Wholesale

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 8.6% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 126 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $119,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Luminist Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 9.4% in the first quarter. Luminist Capital LLC now owns 128 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $122,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Birchbrook Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Birchbrook Inc. now owns 456 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $431,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 7.4% during the 2nd quarter. Ridgewood Investments LLC now owns 159 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $157,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wagner Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3.4% during the 2nd quarter. Wagner Wealth Management LLC now owns 330 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $326,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently 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.