LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI Cuts Stake in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI lessened its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 48.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 612 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 572 shares during the period. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $561,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hilltop National Bank lifted its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 0.9% during the 4th quarter. Hilltop National Bank now owns 3,328 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $3,049,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Costco Wholesale by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 123,965 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $109,899,000 after purchasing an additional 973 shares during the last quarter. Avondale Wealth Management boosted its position in Costco Wholesale by 326.9% during the fourth quarter. Avondale Wealth Management now owns 333 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $305,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the period. ORG Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale by 48.0% in the fourth quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 3,415 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $3,135,000 after purchasing an additional 1,108 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First International Bank & Trust raised its position in shares of Costco Wholesale by 59.3% in the fourth quarter. First International Bank & Trust now owns 1,330 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,219,000 after purchasing an additional 495 shares during the period. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Trading Up 1.2 %

COST stock traded up $11.53 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $938.90. The company had a trading volume of 1,413,409 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,724,087. The stock has a market cap of $416.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 55.13, a PEG ratio of 6.02 and a beta of 0.84. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 52 week low of $667.64 and a 52 week high of $1,008.25. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $946.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $897.99.

Costco Wholesale Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a $1.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.49%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is presently 27.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $1,075.00 to $1,175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, December 13th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Costco Wholesale from $850.00 to $940.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $1,065.00 target price on shares of Costco Wholesale in a report on Thursday, October 17th. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $880.00 to $900.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Finally, Melius Research initiated coverage on Costco Wholesale in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. They issued a “hold” rating and a $950.00 price objective on the stock. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $1,013.59.

Insider Activity at Costco Wholesale

In related news, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $894.68, for a total value of $1,266,866.88. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $24,514,232. This represents a 4.91 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total value of $1,793,420.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,210 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,155,409.10. This represents a 16.38 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.