Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Holdings Raised by Fiduciary Trust Co

Fiduciary Trust Co raised its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 3.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 43,204 shares of the retailer's stock after purchasing an additional 1,596 shares during the quarter. Fiduciary Trust Co's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $39,587,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of COST. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 42,201,610 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $38,668,069,000 after acquiring an additional 455,043 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 9,739,175 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,901,249,000 after purchasing an additional 252,118 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,457,824 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $8,665,921,000 after purchasing an additional 149,209 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth $5,182,316,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 12.6% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,257,809 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,817,573,000 after buying an additional 587,303 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $922.56, for a total transaction of $830,304.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 6,987 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,445,926.72. This represents a 11.41 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Roland Michael Vachris sold 3,600 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $931.00, for a total transaction of $3,351,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 41,077 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,242,687. This trade represents a 8.06 % 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 quarter. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ COST traded up $0.99 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $1,008.70. 1,175,590 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,029,974. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $771.43 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.24. The firm has a market cap of $447.54 billion, a PE ratio of 59.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 1.00. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $958.68 and a 200-day simple moving average of $963.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly 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). The firm had revenue of $63.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 18.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 2nd. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on COST shares. Truist Financial raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $995.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,035.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Cfra Research upgraded Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "moderate buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $940.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Mizuho initiated coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Friday, April 11th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $975.00 price objective on the stock. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,024.03.

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.