Comerica Bank Reduces Stock Holdings in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Comerica Bank lowered its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 141,024 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 3,687 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises about 0.5% of Comerica Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Comerica Bank’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $119,869,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the first quarter worth about $32,000. Financial Connections Group Inc. boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 557.1% during the second quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 39 shares during the period. Vima LLC purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Bank & Trust Co purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale during the second quarter worth about $48,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value of $1,266,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value of $1,266,300.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,492 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,545,746.40. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 500 shares of Costco Wholesale stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $863.88, for a total transaction of $431,940.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 23,800 shares in the company, valued at $20,560,344. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 4,974 shares of company stock valued at $4,252,856. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 1.8 %

COST stock opened at $885.62 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. Costco Wholesale Co. has a twelve month low of $540.23 and a twelve month high of $923.83. The company’s 50 day moving average is $870.67 and its two-hundred day moving average is $816.15. The stock has a market cap of $392.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 54.87, a PEG ratio of 5.57 and a beta of 0.80.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a net margin of 2.83% and a return on equity of 30.02%. The company had revenue of $79.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.91 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $4.86 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 16.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 26th were issued a dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 26th. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 28.75%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on COST shares. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $915.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Telsey Advisory Group increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $1,000.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $710.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, May 31st. Roth Mkm increased their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $676.00 to $755.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $925.00 to $927.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 8th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $881.19.

Costco Wholesale Company 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.