Candriam S.C.A. Reduces Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Candriam S.C.A. trimmed its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 3.0% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 79,557 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 2,472 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $67,620,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $3,628,694,000. Global Assets Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter worth approximately $510,353,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 287.3% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 836,247 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $710,802,000 after purchasing an additional 620,341 shares in the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 3,647.1% in the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 567,641 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $374,688,000 after purchasing an additional 552,492 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,360,168 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $26,640,940,000 after purchasing an additional 485,051 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total transaction of $437,025.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 22,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,015,745. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 620 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $876.50, for a total value of $543,430.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,775 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,320,787.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total transaction of $437,025.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,015,745. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 4,974 shares of company stock valued at $4,252,856 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on COST shares. Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $870.00 to $975.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 25th. Citigroup lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $710.00 to $800.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Argus upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $805.00 to $900.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $925.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $828.73.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

COST stock opened at $876.68 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $388.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.32, a PEG ratio of 5.98 and a beta of 0.80. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $857.45 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $799.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $540.23 and a 12-month high of $918.93.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.75%.

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.