Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Up 1.2% - What's Next?

Key Points

• Costco's stock rose 1.2%, trading at $946.51 after closing at $935.56, with trading volume down 15% compared to the average.
• Analysts have mixed views on Costco, with price targets ranging from $947 to $1,418, while the stock holds an average rating of "Moderate Buy".
• In its recent earnings report, Costco reported $5.87 EPS against an estimate of $5.81, and revenue of $86.16 billion, marking an 8.1% year-over-year increase.

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) shot up 1.2% during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $947.42 and last traded at $946.51. 1,916,563 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 15% from the average session volume of 2,258,398 shares. The stock had previously closed at $935.56.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

COST has been the subject of several research reports. Daiwa Capital Markets decreased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,005.00 to $947.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Argus lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,170.00 to $1,200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, September 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,333.00 to $1,418.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Finally, DA Davidson reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $1,000.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, September 26th. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eleven have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,066.23.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 1.2%

The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $951.65 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $972.04. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.20. The company has a market cap of $419.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 51.98, a PEG ratio of 5.64 and a beta of 0.98.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, September 25th. The retailer reported $5.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 firm 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 company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 3,381 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $915.00, for a total transaction of $3,093,615.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 9,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,912,100. The trade was a 25.77% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total value of $595,230.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 2,362 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,343,222.10. This represents a 20.26% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.7% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 43,356,271 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $42,920,107,000 after buying an additional 711,560 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.5% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 18,325,416 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $18,141,062,000 after buying an additional 90,107 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,275,056 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $10,124,263,000 after acquiring an additional 150,844 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $5,692,035,000. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 4,332,009 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $4,097,127,000 after acquiring an additional 18,045 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

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