Merkkuri Wealth Advisors LLC Decreases Stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Merkkuri Wealth Advisors LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 3.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 310 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 11 shares during the quarter. Merkkuri Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $284,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Fermata Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 1,968 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,745,000 after acquiring an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the third quarter. Sculati Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,649 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,235,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,708 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,398,000 after purchasing an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. Gill Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Gill Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,270 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,164,000 after buying an additional 11 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Scott Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Scott Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,348 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,247,000 after buying an additional 11 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on COST shares. Citigroup lifted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Tigress Financial restated a “buy” rating and set a $1,065.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,150.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,090.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

NASDAQ:COST opened at $939.68 on Monday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $675.96 and a 12 month high of $1,008.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $417.12 billion, a PE ratio of 55.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.63 and a beta of 0.84. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $951.57 and its 200 day moving average price is $903.84.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 7th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 27.25%.

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.