Camden National Bank Reduces Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Camden National Bank decreased its position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 5.2% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 20,826 shares of the retailer’s stock after selling 1,147 shares during the quarter. Costco Wholesale comprises approximately 2.6% of Camden National Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 2nd biggest position. Camden National Bank’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $18,463,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of COST. Financial Connections Group Inc. increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 39 shares during the period. Bank & Trust Co bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the second quarter worth $48,000. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 73.5% during the second quarter. Ruedi Wealth Management Inc. now owns 59 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the period. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in Costco Wholesale during the second quarter worth $50,000. Finally, Fairway Wealth LLC increased its position in Costco Wholesale by 230.0% during the second quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 66 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 46 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 68.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Pierre Riel sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $896.71, for a total transaction of $1,793,420.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Richard A. Galanti sold 1,416 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 27,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,514,232. This trade represents a 4.91 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 11,016 shares of company stock valued at $9,826,115. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Costco Wholesale Stock Performance

Shares of COST stock opened at $964.01 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.44. The stock has a market cap of $427.12 billion, a PE ratio of 58.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.90 and a beta of 0.80. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $901.18 and a 200-day moving average of $864.82. Costco Wholesale Co. has a one year low of $582.83 and a one year high of $976.30.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, September 26th. The retailer reported $5.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $5.05 by $0.10. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 31.05% and a net margin of 2.90%. The company had revenue of $79.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $79.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $4.86 EPS. Costco Wholesale’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 17.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Announces Dividend

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 dividend of $1.16 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.48%. Costco Wholesale’s payout ratio is 28.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Roth Mkm lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $676.00 to $755.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Redburn Atlantic downgraded shares of Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $860.00 to $890.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 10th. Loop Capital lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $975.00 to $1,005.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Costco Wholesale from $955.00 to $980.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $880.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $908.81.

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.