AAPL vs. COST: Apple vs. Costco Wholesale Stock Comparison

October 14, 2026

How do Apple (AAPL) and Costco Wholesale (COST) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Apple (AAPL) is classified in the Information Technology sector (Technology Hardware & Equipment), whereas Costco Wholesale (COST) belongs to Consumer Staples (Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail) — their GICS classifications point to very different parts of the market.

Company profile comparison for Apple (AAPL) and Costco Wholesale (COST)
Profile Item	AAPL	COST
Name	Apple Inc.	Costco Wholesale Corp
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Information Technology	Consumer Staples
GICS Industry Group	Technology Hardware & Equipment	Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail
GICS Industry	Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals	Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail
GICS Sub-Industry	Technology Hardware, Storage & Peripherals	Consumer Staples Merchandise Retail
Market Capitalization	4,976.18 billion USD	425.16 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	Nasdaq	Nasdaq
Listing Date	December 12, 1980	July 9, 1986
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

AAPL

COST

GSPC

Apple (AAPL) vs. Costco Wholesale (COST), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Apple (AAPL) and Costco Wholesale (COST). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Apple (AAPL) and Costco Wholesale (COST). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Apple (AAPL) and Costco Wholesale (COST)
Metric	AAPL	COST
Total Return (1Y)	40.15%	3.10%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	25.14%	20.75%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	20.27%	17.84%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

AAPL

COST

GSPC

Apple (AAPL) vs. Costco Wholesale (COST), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Apple (AAPL) and Costco Wholesale (COST). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Apple (AAPL) and Costco Wholesale (COST)
Metric	AAPL	COST
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	24.46%	19.73%
Beta (5Y)	1.08	0.87
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-33.36%	-31.40%
Avg. Volume (3M)	44.50M	2.03M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

AAPL and COST are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. Each dashed Capital Allocation Line uses that stock's own industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Apple (AAPL) and Costco Wholesale (COST)
Metric	AAPL	COST
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	1.46	-0.07
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	2.15	-0.10

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both companies show strong equity returns, but Apple (AAPL) at 148.75% is the standout with ROE above its industry range; Costco Wholesale (COST) at 28.40% also sits in the top quartile.

AAPL

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

148.75%

AAPL: 148.75%
Max: 44.01%
Q3: 18.64%
Median: 10.41%
Q1: 0.19%
Min: -24.95%

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

28.40%

Max: 35.20%
COST: 28.40%
Q3: 22.31%
Median: 15.25%
Q1: 7.33%
Min: 1.04%

Apple (AAPL) vs. Costco Wholesale (COST): A comparison of their ROE against their respective Technology Hardware & Equipment and Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group benchmarks.

Net Margin (TTM)

Apple (AAPL) at 27.62% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Costco Wholesale (COST) at 3.04%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

AAPL

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

27.62%

AAPL: 27.62%
Max: 27.62%
Q3: 10.85%
Median: 3.68%
Q1: -0.47%
Min: -12.98%

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

3.04%

Max: 5.59%
Q3: 3.42%
COST: 3.04%
Median: 2.39%
Q1: 1.67%
Min: 0.08%

Apple (AAPL) vs. Costco Wholesale (COST): A comparison of their net margin against their respective Technology Hardware & Equipment and Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group benchmarks.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Apple (AAPL) at 32.62% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Costco Wholesale (COST) at 3.79%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

AAPL

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

32.62%

Max: 36.27%
AAPL: 32.62%
Q3: 17.59%
Median: 7.45%
Q1: 1.96%
Min: -21.39%

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

3.79%

Max: 7.49%
Q3: 5.61%
Median: 3.84%
COST: 3.79%
Q1: 2.10%
Min: 0.97%

Apple (AAPL) vs. Costco Wholesale (COST): A comparison of their operating margin against their respective Technology Hardware & Equipment and Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group benchmarks.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Apple (AAPL) and Costco Wholesale (COST)
Metric	AAPL	COST
ROE (TTM)	148.75%	28.40%
ROA (TTM)	27.08%	8.66%
Net Margin (TTM)	27.62%	3.04%
Operating Margin (TTM)	32.62%	3.79%
Gross Margin (TTM)	48.65%	12.77%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Apple (AAPL) at 6.43% and Costco Wholesale (COST) at 8.17% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Apple (AAPL) vs. Costco Wholesale (COST): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both Apple (AAPL) at 22.70% and Costco Wholesale (COST) at 9.96% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Apple (AAPL) vs. Costco Wholesale (COST): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Apple (AAPL) and Costco Wholesale (COST)
Metric	AAPL	COST
Revenue Growth (YoY)	6.43%	8.17%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	1.81%	6.64%
EPS Growth (YoY)	22.70%	9.96%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	6.88%	11.49%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Costco Wholesale (COST) at 1.06 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Apple (AAPL) at 1.00 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for AAPL.

AAPL

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

1.00

Max: 5.34
Q3: 3.18
Median: 2.02
Q1: 1.32
AAPL: 1.00
Min: 0.17

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

1.06

Max: 2.03
Q3: 1.44
Median: 1.17
COST: 1.06
Q1: 1.00
Min: 0.68

Apple (AAPL) vs. Costco Wholesale (COST): A comparison of their current ratio against their respective Technology Hardware & Equipment and Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group benchmarks.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Costco Wholesale (COST) at 0.28 keeps leverage in the lower quartile, while Apple (AAPL) at 0.78 sits in the higher-leverage quartile.

AAPL

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

0.78

Max: 1.80
AAPL: 0.78
Q3: 0.78
Median: 0.24
Q1: 0.04
Min: 0.00

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

0.28

Max: 2.65
Q3: 1.83
Median: 1.26
Q1: 0.62
COST: 0.28
Min: 0.01

Apple (AAPL) vs. Costco Wholesale (COST): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against their respective Technology Hardware & Equipment and Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group benchmarks.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Apple (AAPL) and Costco Wholesale (COST)
Metric	AAPL	COST
Current Ratio (MRQ)	1.00	1.06
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	0.78	0.28
Net Debt / EBITDA	0.13	-0.78

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Apple (AAPL) at 0.31% and Costco Wholesale (COST) at 0.59% pay solid, industry-typical yields, sitting squarely within their peers’ usual range.

AAPL

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

0.31%

Max: 0.83%
Q3: 0.34%
AAPL: 0.31%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

0.59%

Max: 2.97%
Q3: 1.86%
COST: 0.59%
Median: 0.48%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Apple (AAPL) vs. Costco Wholesale (COST): A comparison of their dividend yield against their respective Technology Hardware & Equipment and Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group benchmarks.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Apple (AAPL) at 12.04% and Costco Wholesale (COST) at 26.69% keep payout ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges — dividend policies that share earnings without consuming too much of them.

AAPL

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

12.04%

Max: 41.44%
Q3: 18.11%
AAPL: 12.04%
Median: 0.00%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

26.69%

Max: 59.29%
Q3: 30.05%
COST: 26.69%
Median: 11.72%
Q1: 0.00%
Min: 0.00%

Apple (AAPL) vs. Costco Wholesale (COST): A comparison of their payout ratio against their respective Technology Hardware & Equipment and Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group benchmarks.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Apple (AAPL) and Costco Wholesale (COST)
Metric	AAPL	COST
Dividend Yield (TTM)	0.31%	0.59%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	12.04%	26.69%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Apple (AAPL) at 39.10 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Costco Wholesale (COST) at 46.22 sits in the richer quartile — COST needs stronger growth or earnings quality to justify the premium.

AAPL

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

39.10

Max: 91.79
Q3: 53.64
AAPL: 39.10
Median: 35.67
Q1: 21.42
Min: 11.40

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

46.22

Max: 52.28
COST: 46.22
Q3: 34.09
Median: 21.84
Q1: 15.64
Min: 12.30

Apple (AAPL) vs. Costco Wholesale (COST): A comparison of their P/E ratio against their respective Technology Hardware & Equipment and Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group benchmarks.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Both Apple (AAPL) at 10.66 and Costco Wholesale (COST) at 1.40 command a richer price per dollar of sales than most peers, sitting in the upper P/S ratio quartile of their industries.

AAPL

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

10.66

Max: 14.34
AAPL: 10.66
Q3: 7.85
Median: 3.28
Q1: 1.35
Min: 0.00

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

1.40

COST: 1.40
Max: 1.40
Q3: 0.85
Median: 0.49
Q1: 0.24
Min: 0.03

Apple (AAPL) vs. Costco Wholesale (COST): A comparison of their P/S ratio against their respective Technology Hardware & Equipment and Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group benchmarks.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both look rich against book: Costco Wholesale (COST) at 11.88 sits in the upper P/B ratio quartile, and Apple (AAPL) at 46.33 prices even higher, above its industry range.

AAPL

Technology Hardware & Equipment industry group

46.33

AAPL: 46.33
Max: 10.62
Q3: 6.72
Median: 3.64
Q1: 2.19
Min: 0.30

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

11.88

COST: 11.88
Max: 11.88
Q3: 6.25
Median: 3.86
Q1: 1.83
Min: 0.96

Apple (AAPL) vs. Costco Wholesale (COST): A comparison of their P/B ratio against their respective Technology Hardware & Equipment and Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group benchmarks.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Apple (AAPL) and Costco Wholesale (COST)
Metric	AAPL	COST
P/E Ratio (TTM)	39.10	46.22
P/S Ratio (TTM)	10.66	1.40
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	46.33	11.88
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	2.16%	1.59%