Emprise Bank Trims Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Emprise Bank decreased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 4.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 2,680 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 134 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises 1.4% of Emprise Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Emprise Bank’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $2,456,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Cardano Risk Management B.V. lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 139,415 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $127,742,000 after buying an additional 504 shares during the period. Compton Wealth Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Compton Wealth Advisory Group LLC now owns 4,191 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,840,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. Capital Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 14,224 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $13,033,000 after purchasing an additional 818 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 17,448 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $15,987,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares during the last quarter. Finally, City State Bank increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. City State Bank now owns 2,253 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,064,000 after purchasing an additional 15 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of COST traded down $10.79 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $926.15. The stock had a trading volume of 605,389 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,763,207. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $675.96 and a fifty-two week high of $1,008.25. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $947.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $899.20. The firm has a market cap of $411.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 27.25%.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

COST has been the subject of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price target for the company. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale 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.