Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC Reduces Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC trimmed its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 3.5% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 22,796 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 831 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale makes up approximately 1.4% of Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $20,887,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in COST. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the third quarter valued at $29,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth about $58,000. Fairway Wealth LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 230.0% in the 2nd quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 66 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $56,000 after purchasing an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 329.4% in the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 73 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Finally, VitalStone Financial LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter worth about $71,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Raymond James raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $840.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. StockNews.com downgraded Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,013.59.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total transaction of $1,266,866.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 27,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,514,232. This trade represents a 4.91 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total transaction of $1,793,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,155,409.10. The trade was a 16.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of COST stock traded up $2.96 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $930.33. 1,098,494 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,678,929. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.97. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $946.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $897.99. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $667.64 and a one year high of $1,008.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $412.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.63, a P/E/G ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 0.84.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.50%. 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.