Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Short Interest Update

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) was the target of a significant drop in short interest in the month of July. As of July 31st, there was short interest totalling 6,550,000 shares, a drop of 7.9% from the July 15th total of 7,110,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,950,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.4 days.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $876.20 on Wednesday. Costco Wholesale has a 1 year low of $530.56 and a 1 year high of $896.67. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $849.46 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $785.52. The company has a market cap of $388.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.29, a PEG ratio of 5.79 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.45.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 30th. The retailer reported $3.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $58.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $58.16 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.02% and a net margin of 2.83%. Costco Wholesale’s quarterly revenue was up 9.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.43 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Costco Wholesale will post 15.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Investors of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on COST shares. StockNews.com upgraded Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, June 2nd. Roth Mkm reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $676.00 target price (up previously from $650.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Friday, May 31st. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $875.00 to $950.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. TD Cowen increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $925.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $824.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total transaction of $437,025.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 22,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,015,745. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total transaction of $298,035.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,041,057.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $874.05, for a total transaction of $437,025.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 22,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,015,745. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 4,970 shares of company stock worth $4,249,526. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,833,870 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $29,916,118,000 after purchasing an additional 473,702 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter valued at $3,628,694,000. Capital World Investors increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.1% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,824,778 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,802,147,000 after buying an additional 285,533 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 2.5% in the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,650,562 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,102,941,000 after acquiring an additional 88,550 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 2,794,480 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,844,581,000 after acquiring an additional 85,398 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.