Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) is Emerald Advisors LLC’s Largest Position

Emerald Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 643,510 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 16,559 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale makes up approximately 81.3% of Emerald Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its biggest holding. Emerald Advisors LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $589,629,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of COST. Sculati Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the third quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,649 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,235,000 after buying an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,708 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,398,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the period. Gill Capital Partners LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Gill Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,270 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,164,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Scott Capital Advisors LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Scott Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,348 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,247,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Finally, Lantz Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 645 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $591,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $1,062.54 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $973.78 and its 200-day simple moving average is $928.24. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $697.27 and a 12 month high of $1,078.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $471.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 62.39, a PEG ratio of 6.37 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 27.25%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on COST shares. UBS Group increased their target price 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. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. DA Davidson increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $900.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Loop Capital boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,005.00 to $1,095.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Nine equities research 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, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,021.93.

About Costco Wholesale

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.