Last 48 quarters of trend data · Consumer Defensive · Discount Stores
Quarterly valuation ratios — annualised for comparability. YoY Δ shows same-quarter-prior-year change.
Costco Wholesale Corporation's quarterly P/E stands at 51.2x, down 13.1% year-over-year — suggesting improving earnings relative to price. EV/EBITDA has compressed 10.7% YoY to 32.1x, reflecting multiple compression or accelerating EBITDA.
| Metric | TTM | Q3 '26 | Q2 '26 | Q1 '26 | Q4 '25 | Q3 '25 | Q2 '25 | Q1 '25 | Q4 '24 | Q3 '24 | Q2 '24 | Q1 '24 | Q4 '23 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P/E Ratio → | 52.25 | 51.16 | 55.59 | 49.95 | 40.18 | 58.88 | 66.66 | 59.65 | 42.17 | 52.06 | 46.17 | 41.30 | 28.26 |
| — | -13.1% | -16.6% | -16.3% | -4.7% | +13.1% | +44.4% | +44.5% | +49.3% | +22.3% | +21.9% | -3.2% | -9.1% | |
| P/S Ratio | 1.53 | 1.59 | 1.63 | 1.48 | 1.22 | 1.77 | 1.87 | 1.73 | 1.25 | 1.50 | 1.38 | 1.14 | 0.77 |
| — | -10.4% | -13.1% | -14.0% | -2.3% | +18.5% | +35.8% | +51.8% | +61.1% | +44.8% | +37.0% | +6.3% | -4.0% | |
| P/B Ratio | 14.51 | 13.38 | 14.11 | 13.19 | 14.38 | 16.53 | 18.64 | 17.54 | 16.81 | 16.08 | 15.51 | 10.05 | 9.74 |
| — | -19.1% | -24.3% | -24.8% | -14.4% | +2.8% | +20.2% | +74.5% | +72.5% | +71.0% | +59.1% | -7.3% | -13.4% | |
| P/FCF | 53.84 | 55.05 | 66.30 | 31.60 | 55.17 | 48.13 | 74.00 | 53.73 | 71.88 | 45.19 | — | 18.19 | 28.14 |
| — | +14.4% | -10.4% | -41.2% | -23.3% | +6.5% | — | +195.3% | +155.5% | -41.2% | — | -51.4% | -39.5% | |
| EV / EBITDA | 32.47 | 32.06 | 34.62 | 31.99 | 25.12 | 35.91 | 41.19 | 38.82 | 26.38 | 32.17 | 31.28 | 25.67 | 17.25 |
| — | -10.7% | -16.0% | -17.6% | -4.8% | +11.6% | +31.7% | +51.2% | +52.9% | +26.8% | +36.0% | -2.3% | -7.7% | |
| EV / EBIT | 40.06 | 36.83 | 40.16 | 37.39 | 29.07 | 42.32 | 48.06 | 45.46 | 31.27 | 37.53 | 35.37 | 29.75 | 19.82 |
| — | -13.0% | -16.4% | -17.8% | -7.0% | +12.8% | +35.9% | +52.8% | +57.8% | +24.3% | +30.7% | -7.1% | -12.0% |
Quarterly margins and returns. Watch for margin compression across consecutive quarters.
Costco Wholesale Corporation's operating margin was 4.0% in Q3 2026, up 0.2 pp QoQ and down 0.0 pp YoY.
| Metric | TTM | Q3 '26 | Q2 '26 | Q1 '26 | Q4 '25 | Q3 '25 | Q2 '25 | Q1 '25 | Q4 '24 | Q3 '24 | Q2 '24 | Q1 '24 | Q4 '23 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gross Margin | 12.8% | 12.8% | 12.8% | 13.1% | 12.9% | 13.0% | 12.5% | 12.9% | 12.7% | 12.5% | 12.5% | 12.7% | 12.3% |
| — | -1.7% | +1.9% | +1.0% | +1.7% | +3.5% | +0.2% | +1.9% | +3.0% | +4.0% | +0.9% | +3.7% | +4.0% | |
| Operating Margin | 3.8% | 4.0% | 3.7% | 3.7% | 3.9% | 4.0% | 3.6% | 3.5% | 3.8% | 3.8% | 3.5% | 3.4% | 3.5% |
| — | -0.3% | +3.0% | +3.6% | +1.6% | +6.6% | +3.0% | +2.9% | +8.3% | +20.0% | +2.5% | +6.7% | +1.7% | |
| Net Margin | 2.9% | 3.1% | 2.9% | 3.0% | 3.0% | 3.0% | 2.8% | 2.9% | 3.0% | 2.9% | 3.0% | 2.7% | 2.7% |
| — | +3.2% | +4.2% | +2.8% | +2.6% | +4.8% | -5.9% | +5.2% | +7.9% | +18.4% | +12.4% | +9.7% | +5.6% |
| Metric | TTM | Q3 '26 | Q2 '26 | Q1 '26 | Q4 '25 | Q3 '25 | Q2 '25 | Q1 '25 | Q4 '24 | Q3 '24 | Q2 '24 | Q1 '24 | Q4 '23 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ROE | 30.7% | 6.7% | 6.5% | 6.7% | 9.3% | 7.2% | 7.1% | 7.5% | 10.4% | 7.9% | 7.4% | 6.2% | 8.9% |
| — | -7.5% | -8.7% | -10.0% | -10.6% | -8.6% | -3.8% | +20.5% | +16.8% | +40.8% | +12.2% | -4.2% | -2.1% | |
| ROA | 11.0% | 2.6% | 2.4% | 2.5% | 3.4% | 2.6% | 2.4% | 2.5% | 3.4% | 2.5% | 2.5% | 2.2% | 3.2% |
| — | +0.7% | +0.3% | -0.3% | +0.1% | +2.2% | -2.0% | +12.8% | +7.4% | +28.5% | +12.8% | +6.3% | +9.0% | |
| ROIC | 34.5% | 9.3% | 8.7% | 8.1% | 11.2% | 8.9% | 8.1% | 7.6% | 10.7% | 7.9% | 7.8% | 7.7% | 10.3% |
| — | +4.3% | +7.0% | +7.7% | +4.9% | +12.6% | +3.8% | -1.6% | +3.4% | +22.4% | +5.8% | +14.5% | +4.5% |
Quarterly solvency trend — watch for debt spikes or covenant pressure.
Costco Wholesale Corporation's Debt/EBITDA ratio is 2.4x, down from 2.5x last quarter — at a moderate level that warrants monitoring. The current ratio has improved 5.5% YoY to 1.07x, strengthening the short-term liquidity position. Debt/Equity has declined for 10 consecutive quarters, reflecting a deleveraging trend.
| Metric | TTM | Q3 '26 | Q2 '26 | Q1 '26 | Q4 '25 | Q3 '25 | Q2 '25 | Q1 '25 | Q4 '24 | Q3 '24 | Q2 '24 | Q1 '24 | Q4 '23 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Debt / Equity | 0.28 | 0.24 | 0.25 | 0.27 | 0.28 | 0.30 | 0.31 | 0.33 | 0.35 | 0.43 | 0.45 | 0.36 | 0.35 |
| — | -19.5% | -19.0% | -18.6% | -20.0% | -29.4% | -30.8% | -8.1% | -1.2% | +11.8% | +13.4% | -15.1% | -19.0% | |
| Debt / EBITDA | 0.64 | 2.38 | 2.55 | 2.65 | 1.99 | 2.65 | 2.80 | 2.93 | 2.21 | 3.43 | 3.66 | 3.76 | 2.56 |
| — | -10.2% | -9.1% | -9.6% | -10.0% | -22.5% | -23.5% | -22.2% | -13.8% | -18.1% | -4.9% | -8.6% | -12.4% | |
| Current Ratio | 1.03 | 1.07 | 1.06 | 1.04 | 1.03 | 1.02 | 1.00 | 0.98 | 0.97 | 0.94 | 0.93 | 1.09 | 1.07 |
| — | +5.5% | +6.1% | +6.0% | +7.1% | +7.8% | +7.6% | -10.1% | -9.6% | -12.9% | -12.2% | +5.6% | +4.6% | |
| Quick Ratio | 0.55 | 0.61 | 0.59 | 0.53 | 0.55 | 0.52 | 0.49 | 0.43 | 0.44 | 0.45 | 0.43 | 0.60 | 0.57 |
| — | +17.4% | +20.8% | +23.3% | +24.2% | +16.0% | +12.9% | -28.0% | -23.2% | -20.8% | -22.6% | +27.5% | +23.9% | |
| Interest Coverage | 71.25 | 92.81 | 83.67 | 74.80 | 77.30 | 74.71 | 68.28 | 63.32 | 64.53 | 56.71 | 55.56 | 56.42 | 53.91 |
| — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Includes 30+ ratios · 48 years · Updated daily
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Quick answers to the most common questions about buying COST stock.
Costco Wholesale Corporation's current P/E is 52.2x. The average P/E over the last 4 quarters is 49.2x. Quarterly P/E ratios can vary due to seasonal revenue patterns and one-time charges.
Costco Wholesale Corporation's current operating margin is 3.8%. Margins have been expanding over recent quarters. Quarterly margins are particularly useful for identifying trend inflections that annual data smooths over.
Quarterly financial ratios reveal short-term trend shifts — margin compression, debt spikes, or valuation re-ratings — that annual figures smooth over. They're essential for active investors tracking Costco Wholesale Corporation's business trajectory between earnings reports.