Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) Trading Up 1.7% – Should You Buy?

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)’s share price was up 1.7% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $936.94 and last traded at $935.40. Approximately 793,068 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 54% from the average daily volume of 1,722,926 shares. The stock had previously closed at $919.75.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on COST. Truist Financial increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $909.00 to $935.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Roth Mkm boosted their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Loop Capital increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,005.00 to $1,095.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. 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. Finally, Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $1,019.00 to $1,020.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

The stock has a market cap of $418.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.38, a P/E/G ratio of 5.60 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $949.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $901.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Institutional Trading of Costco Wholesale

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. New Century Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 16.0% in the fourth quarter. New Century Financial Group LLC now owns 680 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $623,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares during the last quarter. FCG Investment Co lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 11.9% during the 4th quarter. FCG Investment Co now owns 3,163 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $2,898,000 after buying an additional 336 shares during the period. Yeomans Consulting Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 7.2% in the 4th quarter. Yeomans Consulting Group Inc. now owns 519 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $476,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the last quarter. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 8.0% in the fourth quarter. Key Client Fiduciary Advisors LLC now owns 796 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $729,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the period. Finally, Veracity Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Veracity Capital LLC now owns 1,505 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,379,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.