Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

by · The Markets Daily

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST – Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report released on Thursday.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on COST. Citigroup increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $585.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 15th. DA Davidson increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $570.00 to $600.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 15th. Loop Capital increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $615.00 to $630.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $612.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $510.00 to $525.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 5th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $632.40.

Get Our Latest Stock Analysis on COST

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of COST opened at $656.01 on Thursday. Costco Wholesale has a twelve month low of $462.22 and a twelve month high of $681.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $291.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.72, a PEG ratio of 4.68 and a beta of 0.76. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $612.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $572.67.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, December 14th. The retailer reported $3.48 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.41 by $0.07. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 27.44% and a net margin of 2.65%. The business had revenue of $57.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $57.79 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.10 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Costco Wholesale will post 15.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 2,565 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, October 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $548.92, for a total value of $1,407,979.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,128 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,461,621.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 2,565 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $548.92, for a total value of $1,407,979.80. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,128 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,461,621.76. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Patrick J. Callans sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $553.76, for a total value of $1,384,400.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 67,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $37,619,131.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,177 shares of company stock valued at $10,878,343 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Sanctuary Wealth Management L.L.C. acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the second quarter worth $38,000. Agur Provident & Training Funds Management Ltd. bought a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 1st quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Steph & Co. increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 42.3% in the 3rd quarter. Steph & Co. now owns 74 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the last quarter. 66.31% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Costco Wholesale

(Get Free Report)

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.

See Also