Bank of New Hampshire Sells 19 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Bank of New Hampshire cut its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 0.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,305 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 19 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 1.5% of Bank of New Hampshire’s holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Bank of New Hampshire’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $5,777,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bangor Savings Bank boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Bangor Savings Bank now owns 1,103 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,011,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida acquired a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $244,000. Advance Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 47.2% in the 4th quarter. Advance Capital Management Inc. now owns 371 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $340,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the period. Kozak & Associates Inc. grew its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Kozak & Associates Inc. now owns 19,936 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $18,273,000 after buying an additional 550 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Iowa State Bank increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Iowa State Bank now owns 2,129 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,951,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.9 %

COST traded up $8.24 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $930.95. 219,517 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,361,638. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1 year low of $654.03 and a 1 year high of $1,008.25. The firm has a market cap of $413.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.67, a P/E/G ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 0.84. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $944.01 and a 200 day simple moving average of $897.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.50%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.25%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total value of $1,793,420.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,155,409.10. This trade represents a 16.38 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Russell D. Miller sold 4,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, October 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $891.15, for a total value of $3,921,060.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,091,512.30. This trade represents a 30.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 7,816 shares of company stock worth $6,981,347 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on COST shares. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,065.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. StockNews.com lowered Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Barclays boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $940.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $880.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,013.59.

About Costco Wholesale

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.