Farmers Trust Co. Has $375,000 Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Farmers Trust Co. lifted its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 66.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 409 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 163 shares during the quarter. Farmers Trust Co.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $375,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter valued at $29,000. Fairway Wealth LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 230.0% during the second quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 66 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 46 shares during the last quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the third quarter valued at about $58,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 329.4% during the 3rd quarter. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc now owns 73 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $65,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Finally, VitalStone Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 3rd quarter worth about $71,000. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.6 %

COST stock traded up $5.56 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $926.93. The stock had a trading volume of 1,058,048 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,650,657. The firm has a market cap of $411.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 54.43, a PEG ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 0.84. Costco Wholesale Co. has a twelve month low of $658.26 and a twelve month high of $1,008.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $944.70 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $897.58.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In other news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total transaction of $1,793,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,210 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,155,409.10. The trade was a 16.38 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of Costco Wholesale 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,400 shares in the company, valued at $24,514,232. The trade was a 4.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 7,816 shares of company stock worth $6,981,347 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $840.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $1,065.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, October 17th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,050.00 to $1,145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $940.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.