Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Price Down 1.3% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Costco's stock price decreased by 1.3% during trading, closing at $978.77, with a significant drop in trading volume of 56% from the average.
• Recent analyst activity includes upgrades and downgrades, with Erste Group Bank lowering its rating to "hold," while Morgan Stanley and Wall Street Zen upgraded their price targets and ratings.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, representing a 0.5% yield, with an ex-dividend date of August 1st.

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) shares were down 1.3% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $970.10 and last traded at $978.77. Approximately 982,268 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 56% from the average daily volume of 2,208,884 shares. The stock had previously closed at $991.25.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on COST shares. Erste Group Bank downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, June 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,050.00.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $434.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.52, a P/E/G ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.96. The stock's 50 day moving average is $975.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $985.81.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 29th. The retailer reported $4.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.24 by $0.04. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.92% and a return on equity of 30.48%. The firm had revenue of $63.21 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $62.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.78 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Corporation will post 18.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.50%.

Insider Activity

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total value of $3,899,840.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 5,774 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,629,419.04. This represents a 40.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total transaction of $536,060.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 11,531 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,300,380. The trade was a 4.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,472,510 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of COST. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 12.3% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,825 shares of the retailer's stock valued at $18,165,000 after purchasing an additional 2,172 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 13.1% during the 4th quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 1,123 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,029,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the period. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 45.0% during the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 117,254 shares of the retailer's stock worth $107,436,000 after acquiring an additional 36,384 shares during the period. Highview Capital Management LLC DE boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Highview Capital Management LLC DE now owns 4,813 shares of the retailer's stock worth $4,410,000 after acquiring an additional 40 shares during the period. Finally, Hudson Value Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 5.7% during the 4th quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC now owns 8,501 shares of the retailer's stock worth $7,789,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.48% of the company's stock.

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.

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