Highline Wealth Partners LLC Sells 73 Shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Highline Wealth Partners LLC lowered its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 7,569 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 73 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale accounts for approximately 2.3% of Highline Wealth Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Highline Wealth Partners LLC’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $6,935,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 113,947.9% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 7,370,916 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $6,534,464,000 after acquiring an additional 7,364,453 shares in the last quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 99,208.6% in the 2nd quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 1,474,733 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,253,508,000 after purchasing an additional 1,473,248 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 28.2% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,538,078 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,307,363,000 after purchasing an additional 338,780 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC raised its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 75,894.4% during the 3rd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 338,935 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $300,473,000 after buying an additional 338,489 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC lifted its position in Costco Wholesale by 3.6% in the 3rd 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,090.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $800.00 to $1,060.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $876.00 to $995.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Oppenheimer restated an “outperform” rating and set a $1,075.00 price target (up from $980.00) on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,075.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,013.59.

Insider Transactions at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total value of $1,793,420.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,155,409.10. The trade was a 16.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 24th. The shares were 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 directly owns 27,400 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,514,232. This represents a 4.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 1.2 %

Costco Wholesale stock traded up $11.53 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $938.90. The stock had a trading volume of 1,413,409 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,724,087. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $946.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $897.99. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12-month low of $667.64 and a 12-month high of $1,008.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $416.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 55.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 0.84.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a $1.16 dividend. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. 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.