Costco Wholesale Corp (COST)
Consumer Staples · Consumer Staples Merchandise Retail · US stock · S&P 500 component
$1,003.32
▼ -14.89 (1.46%)
Fair valueFair
$846 −16.9% to fair value
$423fair band $720–$1,026$1,269
Day's range
$1,002.68 – $1,021.45
52-week range
$844.06 – $1,096.50
About Costco Wholesale Corp
Costco operates membership-based warehouse clubs in the United States and several other countries. Members pay an annual fee to shop for groceries, household goods, electronics and other merchandise, sold in bulk at relatively low markups, including products under the Kirkland Signature label. Membership fees make up a notable portion of operating profit, while merchandise sales produce most of the revenue and keep customers returning.
Costco Wholesale Corp generated $303.2 billion of revenue in the last twelve months, with sales that grew 7.8% a year over the past three years. Net debt to EBITDA is -0.9 times, which means cash exceeds debt. The operating margin is 3.9% and the return on invested capital is 40%. A dividend is paid, with a yield of 0.5%. Its X-Ray Score is 56 out of 100.
Price chart
52-wk range $844.06 – $1,096.50Volume 2,405,665Daily, split-adjusted
Vitals
Market cap$445.9B
52-week range$844.06 – $1,096.50
Volume (last day)2,405,665
P/E (TTM)48.3
EBIT / EV yield2.7%
Free-cash-flow yield2.1%
Dividend yield0.5%
Revenue (TTM)$303.2B
Net income (TTM)$9.2B
Operating margin3.9%
Return on capital39.7%
Debt incl. leases$8.8B
Cash & securities$21.3B
Debt = borrowings plus lease liabilities. Cash & securities = cash, equivalents and short-term marketable securities (long-term securities are not counted, so net cash can be understated for companies that hold large long-term investments). Net debt = debt minus cash & securities. Source: latest SEC 10-Q/10-K. EBIT / EV yield = operating profit divided by market cap plus net debt.
Fair value estimate
$846middle half of models $876 – $981
Fair
−16.9% to fair value
Average of the 13 valuation models that pass our checks: multiples, discounted cash flow, dividend discount and earnings power value. A model more than 100% above or 60% below the price is left out as unrealistic. Model uncertainty is Medium, based on how far apart the models are. Undervalued or Overvalued means the gap to fair value is more than 17.5%.
Price $1,003
Undervalued < $720Fair $720 – $1,026Overvalued > $1,026
P/E multiple
$1,006
P/B multiple
$981
P/S multiple
$883
EV/EBITDA multiple
$876
EV/EBIT multiple
$894
EV/revenue multiple
$934
10-year DCF, EBITDA exit
$901
5-year DCF, EBITDA exit
$994
10-year DCF, revenue exit
$903
5-year DCF, revenue exit
$993
10-year DCF, growth exit · not used
$407
5-year DCF, growth exit
$418
Dividend discount, stable · not used
$388
Dividend discount, multi-stage
$711
Earnings power value
$505
Growth the price implies
23.0%/yr
A model estimate, not a price target or recommendation. Inputs: risk-free 5.13%, equity risk premium 4.30% (Damodaran). How it works.
What this means
Strong business at a fair price
The price sits inside our fair-value band. A high score does not guarantee a good outcome; it shifts the odds a little. Use the checklist as a prompt for your own research.
Before you invest · decision checklist
Ticked boxes are filled in from our data; the rest are yours to answer.
The five-lens scan
Every score explained in one sentence, ranked against Consumer Staples peers. Open a lens to see the numbers behind it.
Strong: 70 to 100Fair: 50 to 69Weak: under 50No score: not enough data
Valuation
Weak
12/100
Expensive against its sector on earnings and cash flow.
See the numbers →
EBIT / EV yield2.7%
Free-cash-flow yield2.1%
Fair value vs price0.8×
Growth
Strong
81/100
Growing faster than most of its sector.
See the numbers →
Revenue growth (3y)7.8%
EPS growth (3y)13.6%
Growth consistency100%
Profitability
Strong
74/100
Earns high returns on the capital it uses.
See the numbers →
Return on invested capital39.7%
Operating margin3.9%
Gross profitability43.7%
Financial health
Fair
69/100
Balance sheet is in typical shape for its sector.
See the numbers →
Piotroski F-Score6 / 9
Net debt / EBITDA-0.9×
Interest coverNo interest cost
Dividends
Fair
51/100
Dividend is typical for its sector.
See the numbers →
Dividend yield0.5%
Dividends vs free cash flow26%
Dividend growth25.2%
Quarterly results: last 6 quarters
+8.0%
May '25
+8.1%
Aug '25
+8.3%
Nov '25
+9.2%
Feb '26
+11.6%
May '26
+11.1%
Aug '26
Revenue against the same quarter a year earlier. Latest quarter revenue $95.7B.
Compare with peers
DLTR Dollar Tree, Inc.71 DG Dollar General Corp66 TGT Target Corp55 WMT Walmart Inc.51Other Consumer Staples Merchandise Retail companies by X-Ray Score.
SWOT analysis: Costco Wholesale Corp
Strengthsinside the company
- Return on invested capital is 39.7%, against a median of 17.4% for industry peers.
- Earnings per share have compounded at 13.6% a year over three years.
- Cash exceeds debt (net debt is negative), which gives room to invest or ride out a downturn.
- Operating profit covers interest 81x, so debt costs are a small drag.
Weaknessesinside the company
- No clear weakness in the figures we track.
Opportunitiesvaluation and setting
- Price momentum is strong on the weekly and monthly signals (trends can reverse).
Threatsvaluation and setting
- Trades at 49.0x earnings, 184% above the 17.3x median of industry peers, so the price already assumes better results.
Written by fixed rules from the figures on this page and the peer table below: filings, our fair value, the sector climate and the price trend. It summarises the data, it is not a forecast or advice.
Compare COST with peers and sector
Medians of 4 Consumer Staples Merchandise Retail peers and of 28 Consumer Staples stocks in our universe.
Largest peers (X-Ray Score): WMT 51, TGT 55, DG 66, DLTR 71.
| Metric | COST | Peers | Sector |
|---|---|---|---|
| X-Ray Score (out of 100) | 56 | 61 | 50 |
| Valuation | 12 | 74 | 53 |
| Growth | 80 | 68 | 48 |
| Profitability | 74 | 64 | 51 |
| Financial health | 69 | 62 | 46 |
| Dividends | 51 | 52 | 50 |
Sector leaders: highest X-Ray Score in Consumer Staples
COST ranks #10 of 29 in Consumer Staples and #3 of 5 in Consumer Staples Merchandise Retail by X-Ray Score. A higher score is stronger on our five pillars; it is a ranking of facts, not a forecast.
Green means better than the peer median, red worse (only where a higher or lower figure is clearly better). A dash means too few companies report the figure. P/E, EV/EBITDA and price changes are not graded: a different level is not good or bad by itself.
Factor ratings for COST
Each factor is rated by where COST stands among the 29 Consumer Staples stocks in our universe.
Rating against the sector
Goodthe top third of these stocks
Averagethe middle third of these stocks
Badthe bottom third of these stocks
"Beats" is the share of those stocks it is ahead of.
Against its own history
The last columns set today's figure against the company's own median of its last five financial years:
▲ Betterbetter than its usual level
▼ Worseworse than its usual level
≈ In linewithin its usual range
For valuation factors Good means cheaper than most of the sector and Better means cheaper than usual for this company, which is not the same as a bargain.
In total: 10 Good · 6 Average · 7 Bad of 23
Growth: 3 · 0 · 0
Profitability: 2 · 1 · 2
Financial strength: 2 · 2 · 0
Valuation: 0 · 1 · 4
Cash flow: 1 · 2 · 1
Efficiency: 2 · 0 · 0
| Factor | COST | Rating | Sector median | Own 5-year median | Against own history |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Growth | |||||
| Revenue growth, 3 years a year | +7.8% | Good beats 91% | +2.3% | – | – |
| Revenue growth, last year | +10.1% | Good beats 84% | +2.2% | +8.2% | ≈ In line |
| EPS growth, 3 years a year | +13.6% | Good beats 82% | +2.0% | – | – |
| Profitability | |||||
| Gross margin | 12.8% | Bad beats 13% | 38.7% | 12.6% | ≈ In line |
| Operating margin | 3.9% | Bad beats 24% | 11.0% | 3.6% | ≈ In line |
| Net margin | 3.0% | Average beats 34% | 6.9% | 2.9% | ≈ In line |
| Return on invested capital | 39.7% | Good beats 94% | 15.2% | – | – |
| Return on equity | 25.8% | Good beats 71% | 18.6% | 27.8% | ≈ In line |
| Financial strength | |||||
| Net debt / EBITDA | -0.9x | Good beats 98% | 2.0x | -0.7x | ≈ In line |
| Interest cover | 80.6x | Good beats 98% | 11.8x | 50.0x | ▲ Better |
| Current ratio | 1.06 | Average beats 52% | 1.04 | 1.03 | ≈ In line |
| Piotroski F-score | 6 / 9 | Average beats 52% | 6 / 9 | – | – |
| Valuation | |||||
| P/E ratio | 49.0x | Bad beats 6% | 25.0x | 45.5x | ≈ In line |
| Price / book | 12.6x | Bad beats 13% | 4.5x | 11.7x | ≈ In line |
| Price / sales | 1.5x | Average beats 55% | 1.8x | 1.4x | ≈ In line |
| EV / EBITDA | 30.6x | Bad beats 6% | 15.2x | 28.2x | ≈ In line |
| Free cash flow yield | 2.1% | Bad beats 10% | 4.8% | 1.9% | ≈ In line |
| Cash flow | |||||
| Free cash flow margin | 3.1% | Bad beats 21% | 9.3% | 2.8% | ≈ In line |
| Cash from operations / net income | 1.71 | Average beats 60% | 1.54 | 1.65 | ≈ In line |
| Free cash flow growth, 3 years a year | +11.6% | Average beats 54% | +11.0% | – | – |
| Accruals (lower is better) | −7.4% | Good beats 79% | −4.2% | – | – |
| Efficiency | |||||
| Inventory turnover | 13.7x | Good beats 98% | 5.3x | 12.8x | ≈ In line |
| Days sales outstanding | 5 days | Good beats 93% | 35 days | 4 days | ≈ In line |
These ratings compare companies with each other and describe the past; they are not a forecast, a recommendation or part of the X-Ray Score. A factor is left out when its data is missing or meaningless (for example a P/E on negative earnings). A dash in the history columns means fewer than three usable years.
Fundamentals checklist
● 7 Good · ● 5 Average · ● 4 BadCash quality
Earnings backed by cashGood
Free-cash-flow yieldBad
Risk models
Altman Z''Average
Piotroski F-ScoreAverage
Growth
EPS growth (3y)Good
Free-cash-flow growth (3y)Average
Revenue growth (3y)Good
Growth consistencyGood
Balance sheet
Current ratioAverage
Net debt / EBITDAGood
Interest coverGood
Valuation
Fair value vs priceBad
EBIT / EV yieldBad
Profitability
Return on invested capitalGood
Operating marginBad
Gross profitabilityAverage
Each check is graded against the company's sector, not a fixed number. Checklist score 57/100.
Financials
| FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 | FY26 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $227.0B | $242.3B | $254.5B | $275.2B | $303.2B |
| Operating income | $7.8B | $8.1B | $9.3B | $10.4B | $11.7B |
| Net income | $5.8B | $6.3B | $7.4B | $8.1B | $9.2B |
| Operating cash flow | $7.4B | $11.1B | $11.3B | $13.3B | $15.8B |
| Operating margin | 3.4% | 3.3% | 3.6% | 3.8% | 3.9% |
| Free cash flow | $3.5B | $6.7B | $6.6B | $7.8B | $9.4B |
| Diluted EPS | $13.14 | $14.16 | $16.56 | $18.21 | $20.76 |
Fiscal years, from SEC filings.
Technical summary
Daily
Strongly bullish
12 bullish · 1 neutral · 3 bearish
Weekly
Strongly bullish
10 bullish · 1 neutral · 1 bearish
Monthly
Strongly bullish
7 bullish · 1 neutral · 0 bearish
Moving averages (daily)
| SMA 10 | 987.3 | Bullish |
| EMA 10 | 987.4 | Bullish |
| SMA 20 | 958.1 | Bullish |
| EMA 20 | 967.4 | Bullish |
| SMA 50 | 938.9 | Bullish |
| EMA 50 | 949.4 | Bullish |
| SMA 100 | 944.2 | Bullish |
| EMA 100 | 950.1 | Bullish |
| SMA 200 | 967.6 | Bullish |
| EMA 200 | 952.7 | Bullish |
Oscillators (daily)
| RSI (14) | 69.20 | Neutral |
| MACD (12, 26) | 22.15 | Bullish |
| Momentum (12) | 6.48 | Bullish |
| Stochastic %K (14) | 82.30 | Bearish |
| Williams %R (14) | -17.70 | Bearish |
| CCI (20) | 115.7 | Bearish |
Pivot points (classic, last session)
S3 978.1 | S2 990.4 | S1 996.9 | Pivot 1,009.2 | R1 1,015.6 | R2 1,027.9 | R3 1,034.4 |
Signals describe what the chart is doing, not what to do. Moving averages: price above the average is bullish. Oscillators use the usual thresholds (RSI 30/70, Stochastic 20/80, CCI ±100, Williams %R −80/−20; MACD and momentum above zero are bullish). Weekly and monthly views use closing prices only.
Dividends
Paid, last 12 months
5.54 USD
Yield on today's price
0.55%
Frequency
Quarterly
Next ex-dividend date
30 Oct 2026
| Ex-dividend date | Amount per share |
|---|---|
| (upcoming) | 1.4700 |
| 1.4700 | |
| 1.4700 | |
| 1.3000 | |
| 1.3000 | |
| 1.3000 | |
| 1.3000 | |
| 1.1600 | |
| 1.1600 | |
| 1.1600 | |
| 1.1600 | |
| 1.0200 |
Ex-dividend dates and amounts from EODHD. Shown as declared, before tax.
ETFs that hold COST
| ETF | Share of the fund |
|---|---|
| VDC Vanguard Consumer Staples | 12.00% |
| FSTA Fidelity MSCI Consumer Staples Index | 11.39% |
| XLP Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR | 9.03% |
| SPHQ Invesco S&P 500 Quality | 3.99% |
| USMC Principal U.S. Mega-Cap | 3.74% |
| PWB Invesco Dynamic Large Cap Growth | 3.25% |
| RSPS Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Consumer... | 2.92% |
| FTHI First Trust BuyWrite Income | 2.25% |
The eight funds with the largest weight in COST among the ETFs we cover, from each fund's latest SEC Form N-PORT (quarter-end positions, so they can be months old). All ETFs.
COST stock splits
COST has split its stock 2 times since 1993. The latest was a 2-for-1 split on 14 Jan 2000.
Full COST stock split history →COST SEC filings
8-KSEC EDGAR
Director or officer change
8-KSEC EDGAR
Other events
10-KSEC EDGAR
Annual report
8-KSEC EDGAR
Results of operations
8-KSEC EDGAR
Other events
10-QSEC EDGAR
Quarterly report
8-KSEC EDGAR
Results of operations
8-KSEC EDGAR
Other events
Where the numbers come from
Statements SEC EDGAR filings (10-K, 10-Q), quarters derived from year-to-date figures.
Prices end-of-day closes, split-adjusted.
Industry inputs beta, multiples and equity risk premium from Damodaran Online (NYU Stern).
StocksXray is for education only and is not financial advice. Scores and fair values are model estimates from public filings and carry uncertainty.