Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Price Up 0.3% – Should You Buy?

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)’s stock price rose 0.3% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $932.87 and last traded at $920.10. Approximately 466,994 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 73% from the average daily volume of 1,729,334 shares. The stock had previously closed at $917.23.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

COST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Melius Research started coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They set a “hold” rating and a $950.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price objective for the company. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $409.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.13, a P/E/G ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $949.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $900.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total transaction of $1,266,866.88. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 27,400 shares in the company, valued at $24,514,232. This represents a 4.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of COST. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 113,947.9% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,370,916 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,534,464,000 after acquiring an additional 7,364,453 shares in the last quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 99,208.6% in the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,474,733 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,253,508,000 after acquiring an additional 1,473,248 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 55.7% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,068,772 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $979,284,000 after acquiring an additional 382,367 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 75,894.4% in the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 338,935 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $300,473,000 after acquiring an additional 338,489 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 3.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,308,615 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,252,274,000 after acquiring an additional 324,973 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% 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.