Field & Main Bank Has $3.45 Million Stock Position in Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST)

Field & Main Bank boosted its stake in shares of Costco Wholesale Co. (NASDAQ:COST) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 5,221 shares of the retailer’s stock after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the period. Costco Wholesale comprises 1.5% of Field & Main Bank’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position. Field & Main Bank’s holdings in Costco Wholesale were worth $3,446,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,134,947 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,901,040,000 after purchasing an additional 210,586 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Costco Wholesale by 61,693.5% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,105,124 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $2,049,630,000 after buying an additional 3,100,099 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Costco Wholesale by 0.9% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 2,689,514 shares of the retailer’s stock valued at $1,519,468,000 after acquiring an additional 24,274 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Costco Wholesale by 1.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,580,649 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,457,964,000 after acquiring an additional 28,259 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Costco Wholesale by 18.3% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,088,673 shares of the retailer’s stock worth $1,180,016,000 after acquiring an additional 323,346 shares during the last quarter. 68.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Costco Wholesale Stock Down 0.4 %

NASDAQ COST traded down $2.85 on Monday, hitting $726.33. 1,526,256 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,049,164. Costco Wholesale Co. has a 12 month low of $476.75 and a 12 month high of $787.08. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The company has a market cap of $322.13 billion, a PE ratio of 47.50, a PEG ratio of 4.86 and a beta of 0.77. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $730.46 and a 200-day moving average of $668.62.

Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ:COST) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, March 7th. The retailer reported $3.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.62 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $58.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $59.11 billion. Costco Wholesale had a return on equity of 28.80% and a net margin of 2.73%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.30 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Costco Wholesale Co. will post 15.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Costco Wholesale Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 10th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 26th will be given a dividend of $1.16 per share. This represents a $4.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.64%. This is a positive change from Costco Wholesale’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.02. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 25th. Costco Wholesale’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.35%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

COST has been the topic of a number of research reports. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $795.00 to $805.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. StockNews.com downgraded Costco Wholesale from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Telsey Advisory Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $800.00 price target on shares of Costco Wholesale in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Roth Mkm upped their price objective on Costco Wholesale from $601.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Costco Wholesale from $610.00 to $675.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 8th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Costco Wholesale currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $694.48.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Costco Wholesale news, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total transaction of $1,072,245.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 6,695 shares in the company, valued at $4,785,786.85. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Costco Wholesale news, Director Susan L. Decker sold 1,442 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $723.48, for a total transaction of $1,043,258.16. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 12,395 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,967,534.60. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Claudine Adamo sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $714.83, for a total transaction of $1,072,245.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 6,695 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,785,786.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 3,727 shares of company stock worth $2,682,948 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Costco Wholesale 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.