Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC Invests $207,000 in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Blackston Financial Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 226 shares of the retailer’s stock, valued at approximately $207,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. VisionPoint Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at $290,000. Capital Advisory Group Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 10.0% during the fourth quarter. Capital Advisory Group Advisory Services LLC now owns 552 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $506,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,167 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,902,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the period. Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 86.1% in the 4th quarter. Paradigm Asset Management Co. LLC now owns 1,081 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $990,000 after acquiring an additional 500 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Physicians Financial Services Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Physicians Financial Services Inc. now owns 5,887 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $5,394,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ COST opened at $1,035.03 on Friday. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 1-year low of $697.27 and a 1-year high of $1,078.23. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $975.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $930.59. The stock has a market capitalization of $459.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 60.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.32 and a beta of 0.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.43.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 21st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 7th were issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Telsey Advisory Group reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $1,100.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $840.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $1,040.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Loop Capital raised their price target on shares of 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. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,021.93.

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.