Costco WholesaleCOST +1.09%97 Shareholder Yield % is 0.76% as of May. 2026, which is 3% below its 10-year median of 0.78. GuruFocus rates COST with a GF Score™ of 97/100 and a GF Value™ of $1,015.53 (Fairly Valued). The stock has 1 warning sign investors should review. Among 301 Retail - Defensive companies, Costco Wholesale ranks worse than 52.82% on this metric.
Shareholder Yield % is how much money shareholders receive from a company that is in the form of cash dividends, net stock repurchases, and debt reduction. It is a measure of shareholder return.
As of today, Costco Wholesale's Shareholder Yield % was 0.76%.
Shareholder Yield % is how much money shareholders receive from a company that is in the form of cash dividends, net stock repurchases, and debt reduction. The term was coined by William W. Priest of Epoch Investment Partners in a paper in 2005 entitled The Case for Shareholder Yield as a Dominant Driver of Future Equity Returns. William Priest indicated that "shareholder yield is a term that we came up with to reflect the various ways dividends can be paid to owners of a business in a publicly-traded company."
Dividend Yield % shows how much a company pays out in dividends each year relative to its stock price, which is most obvious form of shareholder return.
Buyback Yield % is the net repurchase of shares outstanding over the market capital of the company. Shares repurchases also increase shareholder value by returning the money back to shareholders.
Net Debt Paydown Yield % is the change in average of four quarters of company's total debt over a company's market cap. Assuming the total value of a company remains that same, shareholder value is increased as debt is reduced.
Costco Wholesale Shareholder Yield % Related Terms
Costco Wholesale Shareholder Yield % Historical Data
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The historical data trend for Costco Wholesale's Shareholder Yield % can be seen below:
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
COST vs TGT, DG, DLTR: Shareholder Yield % Comparison
For the Discount Stores subindustry, Costco Wholesale's Shareholder Yield %, along with its competitors' market caps and Shareholder Yield % data, can be viewed below:
* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.
Costco Wholesale Shareholder Yield % vs Retail - Defensive Industry
For the Retail - Defensive industry and Consumer Defensive sector, Costco Wholesale's Shareholder Yield % distribution charts can be found below:
* The bar in red indicates where Costco Wholesale's Shareholder Yield % falls into.
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
* All the data are calculated by TTM values. Note that if a companies is traded in several exchanges, then we calculate the company level data for Shareholder Yield % using the primary share class stock data. The calculation result in definition page is for demonstration purpose only, and it's showing the share class level data. Therefore, the numbers in the calculation may differ from elsewhere if the stock is not a primary share.
Costco Wholesale (COST) has a Shareholder Yield % of 0.76% as of May. 2026. Shareholder Yield is how much money shareholders receive from a company that is in the form of cash dividends, net stock repurchases, and debt reduction. View historical data on Costco Wholesale and its competitors. This is near median its historical median of 0.78. According to the industry distribution chart, Costco Wholesale ranks #159 out of 301 companies in the Retail - Defensive industry, placing it in the top 52.8%.
Is Costco Wholesale's Shareholder Yield % too high?
Costco Wholesale's current Shareholder Yield % of 0.76% is near median its 10-year median of 0.78. The Retail - Defensive industry median Shareholder Yield % is 0.96. Costco Wholesale's value of 0.76% is 20.8% below this industry median. Based on the distribution chart, Costco Wholesale ranks #159 out of 301 companies in the Retail - Defensive industry, which is below the industry midpoint. Overall, Costco Wholesale has a GF Score™ of 97/100 and is considered Fairly Valued, reflecting its overall financial health beyond just this single metric.
How does Costco Wholesale's Shareholder Yield % compare to TGT and DG?
According to the Retail - Defensive industry distribution chart, Costco Wholesale ranks #159 out of 301 companies for Shareholder Yield %. This places Costco Wholesale in the lower half of its industry. The industry median Shareholder Yield % is 0.96. Costco Wholesale's value of 0.76% is 20.8% below this benchmark. While the company's 10-year median is 0.78 vs. the industry median of 0.96, Costco Wholesale has consistently been below the industry average. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good Shareholder Yield % for a Retail - Defensive company?
The median Shareholder Yield % among Retail - Defensive companies is 0.96, based on 301 companies in the industry. Companies in the top quartile (top 25%) have a Shareholder Yield % significantly above this median, while those in the bottom quartile fall well below. However, Shareholder Yield % should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. Costco Wholesale's current Shareholder Yield % of 0.76% is 20.8% below the industry median. Use the industry distribution chart on this page to see where any company falls relative to its peers.
What does a high Shareholder Yield % mean?
A high Shareholder Yield % can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. Shareholder Yield is how much money shareholders receive from a company that is in the form of cash dividends, net stock repurchases, and debt reduction. View historical data on Costco Wholesale and its competitors. For the Retail - Defensive industry, the median Shareholder Yield % is 0.96 — values significantly above this may indicate overvaluation, while values below may suggest a bargain or underlying issues. Costco Wholesale's current Shareholder Yield % is 0.76%, which is near median its own 10-year median of 0.78. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is Costco Wholesale stock overvalued right now?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Costco Wholesale (COST) is currently considered Fairly Valued. The stock's GF Value™ is $1,015.53, compared to a current price of $952.54 — trading 6.2% below its estimated fair value. The current Shareholder Yield % is 0.76%, which is near median its 10-year median of 0.78 and 20.8% below the Retail - Defensive industry median of 0.96. Costco Wholesale's overall GF Score™ is 97/100 with 1 warning sign to review. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is Shareholder Yield % calculated?
Shareholder Yield % is calculated from a company's financial statements. For Costco Wholesale (COST), the current Shareholder Yield % is 0.76% as of May. 2026. GuruFocus calculates this using data sourced from SEC filings and annual reports. See the calculation section and 30-year financial data on this page for the full breakdown.
Is Costco Wholesale (COST) Overvalued in 2026?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Costco Wholesale stock appears to be undervalued.
The current stock price of $952.54 is trading 6.2% below its estimated GF Value™ of $1,015.53.
GuruFocus considers Costco Wholesale to be Fairly Valued.
Key valuation signals for COST:
Shareholder Yield %: 0.76% (near median its 10-year median of 0.78)
GF Value™: $1,015.53 vs. price of $952.54 (6.2% below fair value)
Industry Position: 20.8% below the Retail - Defensive median (#159 of 301)
No single metric tells the full story. See the COST stock analysis page for a complete view including 30-year financials, guru trades, and insider activity.
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.
97GF Score
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