Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Stake Lifted by First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services

First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 2.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 18,172 shares of the retailer’s stock after purchasing an additional 475 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises 2.8% of First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services’ portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest position. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services’ holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $9,783,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Costco Wholesale by 118,320.2% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,396,524 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,376,513,000 after buying an additional 7,390,278 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,328,844,000. Morgan Stanley lifted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 18.0% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 8,634,627 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,941,708,000 after purchasing an additional 1,315,174 shares in the last quarter. CI Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter worth about $245,698,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 10.6% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 5,595,523 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,780,247,000 after buying an additional 535,776 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on COST shares. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $610.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Costco Wholesale from $475.00 to $510.00 in a research note on Thursday, August 3rd. Loop Capital raised their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $545.00 to $570.00 in a research note on Friday, June 2nd. StockNews.com assumed coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Wednesday, August 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $560.00 to $640.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 3rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $566.63.

Costco Wholesale Trading Down 1.5 %

Costco Wholesale stock opened at $556.36 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $550.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $518.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $447.90 and a 12 month high of $571.16. The stock has a market cap of $246.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.17 and a beta of 0.79.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 8th. Investors of record on Friday, August 25th were paid a $1.02 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 24th. This represents a $4.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.73%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is currently 30.22%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,565 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $533.00, for a total value of $834,145.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 13,329 shares in the company, valued at $7,104,357. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.22% of the company’s stock.

About Costco Wholesale

Costco Wholesale Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the operation of membership warehouses in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Japan, Korea, Australia, Spain, France, Iceland, China, and Taiwan. It offers branded and private-label products in a range of merchandise categories.