Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Price Up 1.6% - Should You Buy?

Shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Get Free Report) rose 1.6% on Monday . The company traded as high as $996.95 and last traded at $995.66. Approximately 528,734 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average daily volume of 2,057,621 shares. The stock had previously closed at $980.29.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Truist Financial upped their target price on Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Morgan Stanley upped 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. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, June 17th. Telsey Advisory Group restated an "outperform" rating and set a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, June 3rd. Finally, Loop Capital dropped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty-one have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $1,034.79.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.4%

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 business's 50 day simple moving average is $1,004.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $981.29. The stock has a market cap of $435.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.75, a PEG ratio of 5.83 and a beta of 1.00.

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

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 2nd were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 2nd. This is a boost from Costco Wholesale's previous quarterly dividend of $1.16. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.50%.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,014.15, for a total transaction of $2,028,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 8,210 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $8,326,171.50. This trade represents a 19.59% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP James C. Klauer sold 4,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $981.07, for a total transaction of $3,924,280.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 43,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $43,161,193.58. This trade represents a 8.33% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 9,547 shares of company stock worth $9,496,950. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Investment Management Corp VA ADV acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 250.0% during the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 35 shares of the retailer's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 900.0% during the 1st quarter. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC now owns 40 shares of the retailer's stock worth $38,000 after buying an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Finally, eCIO Inc. bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter worth about $48,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.