Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Issues Earnings Results

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10, Briefing.com reports. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 30.02% and a net margin of 2.83%. The business had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.91 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $4.86 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 1.8 %

COST stock traded down $15.82 during trading on Friday, reaching $885.62. 3,459,054 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,969,224. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $870.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $816.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $392.63 billion, a PE ratio of 54.87, a P/E/G ratio of 5.57 and a beta of 0.80. 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 has a 52-week low of $540.23 and a 52-week high of $923.83.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $980.00 target price (up from $950.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $710.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, May 31st. Tigress Financial increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $870.00 to $975.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $975.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $881.19.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total transaction of $1,266,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,545,746.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total value of $298,035.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,041,057.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value of $1,266,300.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at $10,545,746.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,974 shares of company stock valued at $4,252,856 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

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.