Core Insights - Costco is the third-largest retailer globally by revenue, with nearly one-third of U.S. consumers shopping there [1][2] Membership Structure - Costco offers two membership tiers: the Gold Star Membership at $65 plus taxes per year and the Executive Membership at $130 plus taxes per year, which includes additional benefits such as 2% cashback and service discounts [1] Cost Savings - Shopping at Costco can lead to significant savings on groceries, with examples showing chicken thighs are 44.3% cheaper, Kellogg's Frosted Flakes are 39.3% cheaper, and pork chops are 25.7% cheaper compared to competitors [2] - A comparison indicated that consumers could save over $1,000 annually by shopping at Costco for groceries alone, excluding other categories like gas and electronics [2] Product Recommendations - Costco offers under-the-radar items that can provide additional savings, such as generic allergy medication, protein powder, and larger purchases like appliances [3] - The in-house brand allergy medication, Kirkland Aller-tec, can save consumers up to 90% compared to name-brand alternatives, providing a one-year supply [4]

“The most important item we sell is the membership card,” Costco CEO Ron Vachris told Fortune in an April interview Costco has steadily added to its membership base. "Revenue from membership fees increased 5% to $4.8 billion, and our membership base grew to nearly 137 million cardholders, with a 90% renewal rate," the chain shared in its 2024 annual report. The chain raised its membership fees in September, 2024. "In July, we announced our first membership fee increase in seven years, increasing our G ...

Core Insights - Costco Wholesale has proven to be a lucrative investment, significantly outperforming the S&P 500 over the past decade, with a $1,000 investment growing to approximately $6,400 compared to $4,000 in the S&P 500 index fund [1] Company Performance - Costco has a current membership base of 146 million cardholders, indicating strong growth potential as it expands its store presence both domestically and internationally [4] - The company's price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio has increased by over 50% since 2015, currently trading at 46 times its trailing-12-month earnings [5] - Costco's earnings are growing at about 10% year over year, with a consensus long-term earnings growth estimate of 9% [6] Investment Considerations - The high current valuation of Costco stock may limit potential upside in the coming years, with projections suggesting a $1,000 investment today could grow to approximately $2,600 in 10 years, excluding dividends [6] - The Motley Fool Stock Advisor has identified 10 stocks that they believe are better investment opportunities than Costco at this time [7]

Core Insights - Stock splits do not alter a company's intrinsic value but attract significant attention from investors [1] Group 1 - Stock splits are often perceived positively by the market, leading to increased trading activity and investor interest [1]

Core Viewpoint - Costco is attempting to recover from a significant decline in its stock price, which has led to a challenging year for its shareholders [1] Group 1 - The company has experienced a brutal bear market, impacting its stock performance and shareholder value [1]

Core Insights - Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST) shows strong member engagement with a 3.1% increase in global comparable traffic and a 3.2% rise in average transaction value in Q1 fiscal 2026, indicating the effectiveness of its value proposition [1][8] Member Engagement - The implementation of scanning memberships and pre-scanning of baskets has enhanced the member experience, improving checkout productivity by up to 20% in some locations [2] - Digital enhancements have led to a 24% increase in e-commerce site traffic and over 40% growth in app traffic, with digitally enabled comparable sales rising by 20.5% [3] Membership Growth - Paid memberships grew by 5.2% to 81.4 million, while executive memberships increased by 9.1% to 39.7 million, despite a slight 10-basis-point dip in the worldwide renewal rate to 89.7% [4] Industry Comparisons - Walmart reported a 4.5% growth in comparable sales, with transaction growth of 1.8% and an average ticket increase of 2.7% [5] - BJ's Wholesale Club achieved its 15th consecutive quarter of traffic growth, with digitally enabled comparable sales growing by 30% year over year [6] Stock Performance and Valuation - Costco's stock has declined by 5.3% over the past year, contrasting with the industry's growth of 6.4% [7] - The forward 12-month price-to-earnings ratio for Costco stands at 41.95, higher than the industry average of 29.91 [9] Financial Estimates - The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Costco's current financial-year sales implies a year-over-year growth of 7.5%, while earnings per share are expected to grow by 11.7% [10] - Current quarter sales are estimated at $68.75 billion, with a year-over-year growth estimate of 7.88% [13]

We recently published 8 Stocks on Jim Cramer’s Radar.  Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) is one of the stocks on Jim Cramer's radar. Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST) is one of the largest retailers in America. It is one of Cramer’s favorite stocks despite recent sluggish performance. Even though Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ:COST)’s shares are down by 4% year-to-date, the CNBC TV host has continued to remain optimistic about the company. Earlier this month, Guggenheim reiterated ...

Costco didn't have a headline-grabbing year in 2025, and that's precisely what the company intended.Costco Wholesale (COST 0.65%) ended 2025 in a familiar position: operationally strong, strategically disciplined, and still trading at a premium that divides investors. While the stock didn't outperform the broader market this year, the underlying business continued to execute in ways that reinforce why Costco remains one of the most closely watched names in retail.As investors look ahead, three themes from 2 ...

Yesterday's Barchart article on Costco Wholesale Corp. (COST) showed that COST stock is cheap. Today's article illustrates an interesting strategy: short one-month out-of-the-money (OTM) COST puts and calls to pay for longer-dated in-the-money (ITM) COST calls. COST is at $870.32 in morning trading on Dec. 29. I described in the Dec. 28 Barchart article that COST could be worth over 18% more at $1,031 per share ("Costco Has Tumbled Despite Higher FCF and FCF Margins - Time to Buy COST Stock?). More News ...

It has been three years or so since artificial intelligence (or AI) leapt into the zeitgeist with the public introduction of DALL-E2 and ChatGPT. As AI technology develops, I have been tracking how companies are thinking about and using it. The latest earnings season for the US stock market – for the third quarter of 2025 – recently ended and there were a number of companies that I follow or have a vested interest in, where the management teams discussed the topic of AI and how the technology could impact t ...