Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Shares Down 0.7% Following Weak Earnings

Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) traded down 0.7% during trading on Thursday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as low as $1,029.50 and last traded at $1,040.39. 569,061 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 69% from the average session volume of 1,828,094 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1,047.75.

The retailer reported $4.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.09 by ($0.07). The firm had revenue of $63.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $63.02 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.93% and a return on equity of 32.31%.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th were paid a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 27.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Roth Mkm raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Barclays boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $940.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Loop Capital decreased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $1,150.00 to $1,135.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Raymond James lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,029.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in COST. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,808,255 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,489,574,000 after purchasing an additional 32,074 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 7.6% in the third quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC now owns 8,046 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,133,000 after buying an additional 568 shares during the last quarter. Nwam LLC purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the third quarter valued at approximately $20,056,000. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth approximately $8,430,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,662 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,020,000 after acquiring an additional 1,001 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 6.1 %

The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $989.69 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $942.97. 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 company has a market cap of $428.06 billion, a PE ratio of 56.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.15 and a beta of 0.82.

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.