AQR Capital Management LLC Sells 42,733 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

AQR Capital Management LLC decreased its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 12.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 302,217 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 42,733 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.07% of Costco Wholesale worth $276,913,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Cromwell Holdings LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Cromwell Holdings LLC now owns 1,144 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,048,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,488 shares of the retailer's stock worth $3,196,000 after acquiring an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. SRN Advisors LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. SRN Advisors LLC now owns 3,081 shares of the retailer's stock worth $2,823,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the period. Miramar Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Miramar Capital LLC now owns 525 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $481,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the period. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 22.2% in the fourth quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC now owns 55 shares of the retailer's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total transaction of $3,924,280.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 43,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,161,193.58. This represents a 8.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total value of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,987 shares in the company, valued at $6,445,926.72. The trade was a 11.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 9,600 shares of company stock valued at $9,140,195 in the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on COST. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,125.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Loop Capital cut their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,045.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,035.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,065.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Cfra Research upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 4th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $1,024.03.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:COST traded up $9.26 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $1,008.30. 1,546,814 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,033,684. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $720.63 and a one year high of $1,078.24. The company has a market cap of $447.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 59.21, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.95. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $962.39 and a 200 day moving average of $958.15.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, March 6th. The retailer reported $4.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $4.09 by ($0.07). Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. The company had revenue of $63.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $63.02 billion. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 2nd. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale's payout ratio is currently 30.36%.

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.