Short Interest in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) Grows By 7.0%

Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 7,330,000 shares, a growth of 7.0% from the August 15th total of 6,850,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 1,890,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.9 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on COST. StockNews.com upgraded Costco Wholesale from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Telsey Advisory Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $925.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $775.00 to $800.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Tigress Financial increased their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $870.00 to $975.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Costco Wholesale from $915.00 to $925.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twenty have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $844.52.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, July 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total transaction of $298,035.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,041,057.60. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director Kenneth D. Denman sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $851.53, for a total transaction of $298,035.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 5,920 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,041,057.60. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Daniel M. Hines sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $844.20, for a total value of $1,266,300.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 12,492 shares in the company, valued at $10,545,746.40. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 4,974 shares of company stock worth $4,252,856 over the last ninety days. 0.18% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Costco Wholesale

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Costco Wholesale in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale in the 1st quarter worth $32,000. Vima LLC acquired a new position in Costco Wholesale during the 4th quarter worth $34,000. DSM Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Costco Wholesale in the fourth quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 557.1% in the second quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. now owns 46 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Costco Wholesale Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of Costco Wholesale stock opened at $911.32 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $862.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $807.61. Costco Wholesale has a 52-week low of $540.23 and a 52-week high of $923.83. The firm has a market cap of $404.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 56.25, a P/E/G ratio of 5.56 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.45.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 0.51%. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.75%.

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.