Costco Wholesale Corporation
Consumer DefensiveNASDAQ:COST · NASDAQ Global Select
+$2.31 today
Vol 0.78M · Avg 1.99M
Intrinsic Value
COST Intrinsic Value
Start with the valuation result. Compare the current market price with the system DCF estimate, then use the supporting sections below to decide whether the assumptions are reasonable.
Intrinsic Value
System DCF · consensus of 4 models
Sign in to unlock intrinsic value
Free accounts get 5 valuations per week. Upgrade for more.
Monitor COST
Get notified when the price moves into your range
Use alerts to turn the valuation into an action plan instead of checking the stock manually.
Price Alerts
Get notified when COST drops below a target
Sign in to activate price alerts · unlock IV-based targets
Valuation History
Is COST cheaper or more expensive than usual?
Review how the market has valued Costco Wholesale Corporation over time before deciding whether today’s discount or premium is unusual.
Price History
Dividend-adjusted closing price
Change
-2.02%
Period High
$1,094.32
Period Low
$847.61
Latest
$976.96
Analyst Targets
See where analysts expect COST to trade next
Compare the latest consensus target range with the current share price to understand how much upside or downside Wall Street is pricing in.
Wall Street Price Targets
1-year price history with analyst consensus target
Current
$976.96
Low Target
$769.00
Avg Target
$1,085.57
High Target
$1,275.00
Upside (Avg)
+11.12%
Alternatives to COST
Compare Costco Wholesale Corporation with similar companies
A stock can look attractive in isolation and still be less compelling than a peer. Check competitors before committing to the thesis.
Competitors
Peer companies in the same sector
Walmart Inc.
NASDAQ:WMT
$958.34B
The Coca-Cola Company
NYSE:KO
$353.97B
The Procter & Gamble Company
NYSE:PG
$348.15B
Philip Morris International Inc.
NYSE:PM
$285.78B
Target Corporation
NYSE:TGT
$61.40B
Dollar General Corporation
NYSE:DG
$25.36B
Dollar Tree, Inc.
NASDAQ:DLTR
$21.95B
BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc.
NYSE:BJ
$11.58B
PriceSmart, Inc.
PSMT
$5.63B
Ollie's Bargain Outlet Holdings, Inc.
OLLI
$5.22B
Fundamental Analysis
Capture the investment case and test company quality
Write down the key idea, risks, and what would change your mind. Then review growth, profitability, returns, owner payouts, and insider activity.
My Notes
Journal entries for COST
Sign in to keep notes
Track your buy/sell/hold decisions for every stock in your personal journal.
Quality Snapshot
Start with the numbers that compound value
Check whether earnings, revenue, equity, cash, and returns on capital are moving in the same direction as your written thesis.
Big Five Numbers
CAGR by period · ROIC shows average
| Metric | 10yr | 5yr | 3yr | 1yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
EPS | N/A | N/A | +11.3% | +15.5% |
Revenue | N/A | N/A | +5.4% | +3.2% |
Equity | +3.5% | +7.7% | +10.9% | -3.5% |
Cash | N/A | N/A | +10.8% | -16.3% |
ROIC | 13.7% | 15.1% | 15.1% | 16.7% |
Analysis
Latest growth is strongest in ROIC at 16.7% and weakest in Cash at -16.3%. Three-year average ROIC is 15.1%, which helps show whether that growth is being earned efficiently.
Growth Profile
Compare historical growth with forward expectations
Strong past growth matters more when analysts still expect the business to expand without relying on one temporary driver.
Growth Analysis
Historical CAGR & forward analyst estimates
| Metric | 10yr | 5yr | 3yr | Fwd Est. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EPS | N/A | N/A | +11.3% | +11.8% (15yr)16 analysts |
| Revenue | N/A | N/A | +5.4% | +8.5% (15yr)15 analysts |
| Net Income | N/A | N/A | +11.6% | +11.8% (15yr)15 analysts |
| EBIT | N/A | N/A | +9.5% | +11.4% (15yr)15 analysts |
Analysis
Recent growth has been strongest in Net Income at +11.6% over three years. Forward estimates point to Net Income at +11.8% (15yr), giving you a quick check on whether expectations are accelerating or cooling.
Earnings Quality
Follow revenue through to net income
Use the waterfall to see which costs, margins, and operating lines explain how much of each sales dollar becomes profit.
Earnings Waterfall
Revenue to Net Income
Key Ratios
Analysis
$293.6B of revenue converted into $8.8B of net income for the selected period. Gross margin is 12.9% and net margin is 3.0%, showing how much revenue survives after costs and taxes. EPS is $19.88, tying the income statement back to per-share earnings.
Capital Efficiency
Measure how well Costco Wholesale Corporation turns capital into returns
Returns on equity, invested capital, and assets help separate durable operators from businesses that only grow by adding more capital.
Return Metrics
ROE, ROIC & ROA over time
ROE
27.8%
avg 25.3%
ROIC
19.4%
avg 16.0%
ROA
10.5%
avg 8.4%
Analysis
ROE is currently the strongest return metric at 27.8% versus its period average of 25.3%. 3 of 3 return metrics are above their quality threshold, which helps indicate how efficiently the company turns capital and assets into profit.
Owner Returns
Review how cash comes back to shareholders
Dividends, buybacks, and debt paydown show whether excess cash is being reinvested, returned, or used to strengthen the balance sheet.
Shareholder Returns
Dividend, buyback & debt paydown yields
Dividend Yield (TTM)
0.53%
Buyback Yield (TTM)
0.20%
Debt Paydown (TTM)
0.05%
Total Yield (TTM)
0.78%
Analysis
Total TTM shareholder yield is 0.78% including 0.05% from debt paydown. The largest current contributor is dividends at 0.53%, which helps show whether capital returns are coming from direct cash payouts, share count reduction, or balance sheet cleanup.
Dividend Record
Check payout durability before counting on yield
A dividend is more useful when growth, payout ratio, and free cash flow support the current yield.
Dividends
Dividend history, growth & yield
Yield
0.55%
Annual Div/Share
$5.37
Payout Ratio
26.1%
Frequency
Quarterly
Shareholder Yield
0.71%
Next Ex-Date
Not announced
Next Payment
—
1Y Growth
+12.3%
3Y CAGR
+13.0%
5Y CAGR
-15.1%
Dividend Payments, Annual Total (TTM) & Yield
Analysis
The current indicated dividend yield is 0.55%, with TTM dividends of $5.37 per share. Three-year dividend growth is +13.0%, which helps show whether payouts are compounding or flattening. The payout ratio is 26.1%, so compare payout growth against earnings coverage. Payments are currently quarterly.
Company Overview
Understand how Costco Wholesale Corporation makes money
Finish by grounding the numbers in the company profile, leadership, balance sheet, and free cash flow.
Key Information
Leadership
Put the business in management context
Company facts explain what Costco Wholesale Corporation does; leadership context helps you judge who is responsible for capital allocation and execution.
Management
Key executives, compensation & ownership
| Name | Title | Compensation | Tenure | Age | Shares Owned | Ownership % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Javier Polit | Executive Vice President and CI&DO of Information Systems | $3.84M | — | 61 | $10,189.59 | <0.01% |
Ron Vachris | President, Chief Executive Officer & Director | $1.84M | — | 61 | $54,910.86 | 0.01% |
Gary Millerchip | Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer | $1.32M | — | 54 | $15,465.30 | <0.01% |
Pierre Riel | Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer of International Division | $1.16M | — | 63 | $12,864.25 | <0.01% |
Brenda Weber | Senior Vice President of Human Resources | — | — | — | — | — |
Caton Frates | Senior Executive Vice President of Warehouse Operations - U.S. & Mexico | — | — | 57 | $5,815.00 | <0.01% |
David Sherwood | Vice President of Finance & Investor Relations | — | — | — | — | — |
James C. Klauer | Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer of Northern Division | — | — | 64 | $44,836.99 | 0.01% |
John Sullivan | Executive Vice President, General Counsel & Corporate Secretary | — | — | 66 | $24,089.94 | <0.01% |
Patrick J. Callans | Executive Vice President of Administration | — | — | 64 | $61,571.56 | 0.01% |
Claudine E. Adamo | Executive Vice President of Administration | — | — | 55 | $6,121.20 | <0.01% |
William Richard Wilcox | Executive VP & COO of Southwest Division and Mexico | — | — | 60 | $2,000.00 | <0.01% |
Yoram Rubanenko | Executive Vice President & Chief Operating Officer of Eastern Division | — | — | 62 | $9,993.03 | <0.01% |
Tiffany Barbre | Senior Vice President, Corporate Controller & Principal Accounting Officer | — | — | 52 | $5,155.45 | <0.01% |
Peter Gruening | Senior Vice President of Membership, Marketing & Member Service Centers | — | — | — | — | — |
Richard Chang | Senior Vice President & GM of Asia | — | — | — | $2,000.00 | <0.01% |
Sheri Flies | Senior Vice President of Global Sustainability & Compliance | — | — | — | — | — |
Insider Trading
SEC Form 4 transactions — last 12 months
Buys
0
$0.00
Sells
17
$23.19M
Net Sentiment
$23.19M
Net selling
Most Active
DECKER SUSAN L
3 transactions
1–10 of 17
Analysis
Insiders reported 0 buys worth $0.00 and 17 sells worth $23.19M over the last 12 months. That adds up to net selling of $23.19M. DECKER SUSAN L was the most active insider with 3 transactions.
Financial Position
Check what supports the company underneath the income statement
The balance sheet shows liquidity, debt, asset mix, and book value quality before you rely on earnings or growth assumptions.
Balance Sheet
Assets, liabilities & equity
| Cash & Equivalents | $18.9B |
| Short-term Investments | $1.1B |
| Receivables | $3.8B |
| Inventory | $19.4B |
| Other Current | $2.0B |
| Total Current Assets | $45.2B |
| PP&E (Net) | $37.0B |
| Other Non-current | $4.2B |
| Total Non-current Assets | $41.3B |
| Total Assets | $86.4B |
Analysis
Selected assets total $86.4B for Latest. The largest visible component is PP&E (Net) at $37.0B, about 42.9% of the tab total. Use the mix to judge balance sheet concentration, liquidity, leverage, and how much of book value is supported by tangible operating assets.
Cash Generation
Finish by testing whether profit turns into cash
Free cash flow connects accounting earnings to owner earnings, showing how much cash remains after reinvestment needs.
Free Cash Flow
Net Income to FCF bridge
Analysis
Analysis will appear once cash flow data is available for this period.
Explore More
Continue the stock analysis
Jump to another research area for this company.