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Costco Wholesale Corp COST

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Stock XNAS Rating as of
$916.25 +3.28 (0.36%)
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As of Delayed Price Closed

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Wide-Moat Costco's Membership-Led Model and Global Playbook Cement Its Leadership in Value Retail

Brett Husslein

Costco’s strategy is built on a differentiated model for the mature, highly competitive retail industry. The firm earns most of its operating profit from membership fees, enabling it to sell merchandise at near-break-even prices. This reinforces its reputation as a price-leader, drives recurring traffic, and keeps renewal rates near 90%. We believe rising executive membership penetration (with 3 times higher average customer spending) strengthens this high-margin, predictable revenue stream, cementing itself as an industry leader with over 60% share of the domestic warehouse club market.

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Price vs Fair Value

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COST is trading at a LOCK|Sb@$>j> premium.
Price
$916.25
Fair Value
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Uncertainty
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1-Star Price
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5-Star Price
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Economic Moat
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Capital Allocation
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Bulls Say, Bears Say

Bulls

Executive membership penetration continues to rise (11% higher than a decade ago), lifting the profitability of Costco’s recurring fee base and merchandise sales, as these members spend 3 times more on average than a basic member.

Bears

Expansion into markets with stricter labor laws and zoning restrictions, such as parts of Europe, could slow Costco’s growing footprint and ability to further replicate its US model.

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Trading Information

Previous Close Price
$912.97
Day Range
$907.21–916.73
52-Week Range
$844.06–1,096.50
Bid/Ask
$915.62 / $916.15
Shares Outstanding
443.48M
Market Cap
$406.34B
Volume/Avg
2M / 2M

Key Statistics

Price/Earnings (Normalized)
47.66
Price/Sales
1.43
Dividend Yield (Trailing)
0.59%
Dividend Yield (Forward)
0.64%
Total Yield
0.80%

Company Profile

Founded in 1983, Costco Wholesale now operates a global chain of membership-based warehouse clubs, delivering high-quality goods and services at consistently low prices. As of its most recent fiscal year, Costco operated approximately 910 warehouses, serving more than 80 million members across its three geographic segments: Costco US (approximately 73% of total revenue), Costco Canada (13%), and Costco International (14%).Costco’s core value proposition—quality products at unbeatable prices—has yielded consistently strong member renewal rates (93% in the US and Canada and nearly 90% internationally). About 55% of Costco’s fiscal 2025 revenue came from its grocery offerings, and another 25% from general merchandise.
Sector
Consumer Defensive
Industry
Discount Stores
Stock Style Box
Large Core
Total Number of Employees
341,000
Website
https://www.costco.com

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Valuation

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Metric
COST
WMT
KR
Price/Earnings (Normalized)
 47.6641.3111.83
Price/Book Value
 12.549.415.58
Price/Sales
 1.431.230.25
Price/Cash Flow
 33.5221.304.92
Price/Earnings
COST
WMT
KR

Financial Strength

Metric
COST
WMT
KR
Quick Ratio
 0.560.190.34
Current Ratio
 1.070.770.79
Interest Coverage
 77.3811.582.97
Quick Ratio
COST
WMT
KR

Profitability

Metric
COST
WMT
KR
Return on Assets (Normalized)
 11.74%8.28%6.16%
Return on Equity (Normalized)
 31.29%24.92%42.30%
Return on Invested Capital (Normalized)
 23.79%14.91%11.48%
Return on Assets
COST
WMT
KR

Discount Stores Industry Comparables

Screen With Investor
1-Day Chart
Name
Price
Morningstar Rating for Stocks
Capital Allocation
Economic Moat
Market Cap
Walmart Inc
WMT
LOCK|MzK^<x#LOCK|!R$906B
 Target Corp
TGT
LOCK|&#<L#n?LOCK|>V$61B
 Wal - Mart de Mexico SAB de CV ADR
WMMVY
—LOCK|B%>!N$49B
 Wal - Mart de Mexico SAB de CV
WMMVF
—LOCK|W#!?J$49B
 Dollarama Inc ADR
DLMAY
—LOCK|$?qJ$35B
 Dollar General Corp
DG
LOCK|Lj@>!JdLOCK|?^<t$26B
 Dollar Tree Inc
DLTR
LOCK|V$LScFRLOCK|mS$24B
 BJ's Wholesale Club Holdings Inc
BJ
LOCK|y%xvwGLOCK|RX$11B
 Former BL Stores Inc
BIGGQ
——$8,908

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