Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC Sells 11,336 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC trimmed its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 56.9% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 8,600 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 11,336 shares during the quarter. Galvin Gaustad & Stein LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $7,880,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of COST. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Endeavor Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $55,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the third quarter worth about $58,000. Finally, Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $58,000. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $939.68 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $417.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.84. The company’s 50 day moving average is $950.92 and its 200 day moving average is $903.31. Costco Wholesale Co. has a twelve month low of $675.96 and a twelve month high of $1,008.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

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 $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is presently 27.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on COST. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,075.00 price target (up from $980.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Tigress Financial restated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,065.00 price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $840.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,013.59.

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.