Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Acquired by SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC

SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 9.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,449 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 210 shares during the period. SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $2,244,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the third quarter valued at about $42,896,000. Czech National Bank lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 6.9% during the 3rd quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 90,312 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $80,063,000 after acquiring an additional 5,799 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 24.2% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 6,661 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,905,000 after acquiring an additional 1,300 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 5.6% in the third quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 7,631 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,765,000 after acquiring an additional 403 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Everpar Advisors LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 3.3% in the third quarter. Everpar Advisors LLC now owns 539 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $478,000 after acquiring an additional 17 shares in the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,065.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Citigroup increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,075.00 target price (up from $980.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $840.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:COST opened at $979.88 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $954.51 and its two-hundred day moving average is $907.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $434.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 57.54, a PEG ratio of 5.75 and a beta of 0.84. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $691.50 and a 52 week high of $1,008.25.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.47%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.25%.

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.