Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Holdings Lessened by Tranquility Partners LLC

Tranquility Partners LLC reduced its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,049 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 158 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale accounts for about 2.4% of Tranquility Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Tranquility Partners LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $6,473,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Costco Wholesale by 113,947.9% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,370,916 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $6,534,464,000 after purchasing an additional 7,364,453 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC increased its stake in Costco Wholesale by 100,422.3% in the fourth quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 796,137 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $729,476,000 after purchasing an additional 795,345 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 55.7% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,068,772 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $979,284,000 after buying an additional 382,367 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 75,894.4% during the third quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 338,935 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $300,473,000 after buying an additional 338,489 shares during the period. Finally, FMR LLC grew its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 3.6% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 9,308,615 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $8,252,274,000 after buying an additional 324,973 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the company. Barclays upped their price objective 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. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $950.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Telsey Advisory Group restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $1,100.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,021.93.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $1,076.86 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98. Costco Wholesale Co. has a fifty-two week low of $697.27 and a fifty-two week high of $1,078.24. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $966.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $919.48. The company has a market capitalization of $478.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 63.23, a PEG ratio of 6.26 and a beta of 0.84.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 27.25%.

Costco Wholesale 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.