Costco Wholesale Corporation $COST Stake Lowered by Central Bank & Trust Co.

Central Bank & Trust Co. reduced its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,218 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 316 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for 2.3% of Central Bank & Trust Co.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Central Bank & Trust Co.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $14,075,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Corps Capital Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Corps Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,547 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,463,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.6% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 126 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $119,000 after purchasing an additional 10 shares during the period. Rooted Wealth Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Rooted Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 441 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $404,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Bank & Trust Co increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 20.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank & Trust Co now owns 65 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. Finally, Amplius Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.3% during the 1st quarter. Amplius Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 866 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $819,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Loop Capital dropped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,110.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 29th. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,060.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, June 17th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $995.00 to $1,042.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, May 30th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Wednesday, August 27th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,115.00 to $1,160.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,056.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Teresa A. Jones sold 600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $992.05, for a total transaction of $595,230.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 2,362 shares in the company, valued at $2,343,222.10. The trade was a 20.26% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Yoram Rubanenko sold 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $974.96, for a total transaction of $3,899,840.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 5,774 shares in the company, valued at $5,629,419.04. This represents a 40.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 5,147 shares of company stock worth $5,031,130. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of COST stock opened at $960.10 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.21. Costco Wholesale Corporation has a 12-month low of $867.16 and a 12-month high of $1,078.23. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $959.76 and a 200-day moving average of $973.69. The company has a market capitalization of $425.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.46, a P/E/G ratio of 5.45 and a beta of 0.97.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st were paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is presently 29.50%.

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.