Ancora Advisors LLC Has $16.90 Million Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST

Key Points

• Ancora Advisors LLC has reduced its stake in Costco Wholesale Corporation by 1.5%, selling 279 shares during the first quarter, leaving it with 17,873 shares valued at approximately $16.9 million.
• Recent analyst ratings show a consensus of seventeen "Buy" ratings and ten "Hold" ratings, with a price target of around $1,050.00 for Costco's stock.
• Costco has declared a quarterly dividend of $1.30, amounting to an annualized dividend yield of 0.6%, with a payout ratio of 29.5%.

Ancora Advisors LLC trimmed its position in Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST - Free Report) by 1.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,873 shares of the retailer's stock after selling 279 shares during the quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC's holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $16,904,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bosun Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.6% during the 4th quarter. Bosun Asset Management LLC now owns 636 shares of the retailer's stock worth $583,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Corps Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Corps Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,547 shares of the retailer's stock worth $1,463,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.6% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 126 shares of the retailer's stock worth $119,000 after buying an additional 10 shares during the period. Rooted Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Rooted Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 441 shares of the retailer's stock worth $404,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. Finally, Bank & Trust Co grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 20.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 65 shares of the retailer's stock worth $61,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ COST traded up $7.58 on Friday, reaching $963.48. The stock had a trading volume of 1,926,561 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,013,209. 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 fifty day moving average of $962.23 and a two-hundred day moving average of $977.68. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 1-year low of $867.16 and a 1-year high of $1,078.23. The company has a market cap of $427.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.36 and a beta of 0.97.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st were issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on COST. Erste Group Bank cut Costco Wholesale from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $1,035.00 price objective on Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,225.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. Loop Capital dropped their price target 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. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, June 17th. Seventeen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $1,050.00.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 547 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $980.00, for a total value of $536,060.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 11,531 shares of the company's stock, valued at $11,300,380. This represents a 4.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Patrick J. Callans sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,002.77, for a total value of $3,008,310.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 58,543 shares in the company, valued at approximately $58,705,164.11. This trade represents a 4.87% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 8,147 shares of company stock valued at $8,039,440. Corporate insiders own 0.18% 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.