Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp Sells 65 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp lowered its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,112 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 65 shares during the period. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $4,034,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,108,655 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $10,287,718,000 after purchasing an additional 333,308 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 18.0% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 8,634,627 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,941,708,000 after buying an additional 1,315,174 shares during the last quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 118,320.2% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,396,524 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,376,513,000 after buying an additional 7,390,278 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,134,947 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,901,040,000 after buying an additional 210,586 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth about $2,328,844,000. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

NASDAQ:COST traded up $0.55 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $732.63. The stock had a trading volume of 1,713,268 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,605,208. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $725.19 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $643.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $324.92 billion, a PE ratio of 47.92, a P/E/G ratio of 5.06 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.43. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $476.75 and a 12 month high of $787.08.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.62 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $58.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $59.11 billion. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.73% and a return on equity of 28.80%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.30 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 2nd were given a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 1st. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $665.00 to $749.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Loop Capital raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $710.00 to $755.00 in a research note on Friday, January 19th. Northcoast Research downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $620.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, December 20th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $585.00 to $630.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, December 15th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $750.00 to $785.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 4th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $668.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other Costco Wholesale news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $662.30, for a total value of $927,220.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 13,922 shares in the company, valued at $9,220,540.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, VP Yoram Rubanenko sold 2,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $680.33, for a total transaction of $1,700,825.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,910 shares in the company, valued at $4,020,750.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $662.30, for a total transaction of $927,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,922 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,220,540.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 15,582 shares of company stock worth $10,736,778 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.