Arlington Trust Co LLC Cuts Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Arlington Trust Co LLC lessened its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 4.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 2,696 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 138 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 0.5% of Arlington Trust Co LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Arlington Trust Co LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $2,470,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of COST. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,808,255 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,489,574,000 after acquiring an additional 32,074 shares during the last quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. Hudson Value Partners LLC now owns 8,046 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,133,000 after acquiring an additional 568 shares during the last quarter. Nwam LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 3rd quarter valued at $20,056,000. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter valued at $8,430,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 15.0% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,662 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $7,020,000 after acquiring an additional 1,001 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of COST opened at $1,061.92 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $697.27 and a 12-month high of $1,063.00. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $961.27 and a 200 day moving average price of $915.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $471.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 62.36, a P/E/G ratio of 6.26 and a beta of 0.84.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Investors of record on Friday, February 7th will be issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 7th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.25%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on COST. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $1,016.00 price objective on the stock. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $990.00 to $1,030.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,040.00 to $1,070.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Tigress Financial reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $1,065.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,090.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,021.93.

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.