Adirondack Trust Co. Decreases Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Adirondack Trust Co. trimmed its position in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.3% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 1,560 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 37 shares during the quarter. Adirondack Trust Co.’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $1,429,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter valued at about $55,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the third quarter valued at about $58,000. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth $58,000. Finally, Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc raised its holdings 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 during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently commented on COST. Barclays raised their target price on Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $940.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Roth Mkm increased their target price on Costco Wholesale from $755.00 to $907.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $840.00 to $1,040.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $935.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $1,013.59.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 0.3 %

COST stock opened at $942.16 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $418.22 billion, a PE ratio of 55.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.65 and a beta of 0.84. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $675.96 and a 52 week high of $1,008.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.98. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $950.56 and its 200 day simple moving average is $903.04.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 21st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.49%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 27.25%.

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.