Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report)'s share price dropped 0.6% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $885.50 and last traded at $888.53. Approximately 445,806 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average daily volume of 1,950,611 shares. The stock had previously closed at $893.63.
A number of equities research analysts have commented on COST shares. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $975.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Tigress Financial increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $870.00 to $975.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Loop Capital increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,005.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $830.00 to $850.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $886.74.
View Our Latest Stock Report on Costco Wholesale
The company has a market cap of $394.52 billion, a PE ratio of 53.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.53 and a beta of 0.80. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $881.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $825.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.
Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 31.05% and a net margin of 2.90%. The firm had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $79.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $4.86 earnings per share. Costco Wholesale's revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.
In other news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 3,200 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $888.99, for a total value of $2,844,768.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,630 shares in the company, valued at $7,671,983.70. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $848.53, for a total value of $1,272,795.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 10,992 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,327,041.76. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 3,200 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $888.99, for a total transaction of $2,844,768.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,671,983.70. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 6,674 shares of company stock valued at $5,831,324 in the last 90 days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Biltmore Family Office LLC raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Biltmore Family Office LLC now owns 786 shares of the retailer's stock worth $531,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the period. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 24.0% in the 4th quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 630,275 shares of the retailer's stock worth $416,032,000 after purchasing an additional 122,053 shares during the period. Buckingham Strategic Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Buckingham Strategic Wealth LLC now owns 18,481 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $12,199,000 after purchasing an additional 513 shares in the last quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT now owns 158,156 shares of the retailer's stock worth $104,396,000 after purchasing an additional 580 shares during the period. Finally, Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 38.5% during the fourth quarter. Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan Trust Fund now owns 352,961 shares of the retailer's stock worth $232,982,000 after buying an additional 98,184 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.
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.
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