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COST vs. META: Costco Wholesale vs. Meta Platforms Stock Comparison

How do Costco Wholesale (COST) and Meta Platforms (META) 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

Costco Wholesale (COST) is classified in the Consumer Staples sector (Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail), whereas Meta Platforms (META) belongs to Communication Services (Media & Entertainment) — their GICS classifications point to very different parts of the market.

Company profile comparison for Costco Wholesale (COST) and Meta Platforms (META)
Profile ItemCOSTMETA
NameCostco Wholesale CorpMeta Platforms Inc. Class A Common Stock
Country/RegionUnited StatesUnited States
GICS SectorConsumer StaplesCommunication Services
GICS Industry GroupConsumer Staples Distribution & RetailMedia & Entertainment
GICS IndustryConsumer Staples Distribution & RetailInteractive Media & Services
GICS Sub-IndustryConsumer Staples Merchandise RetailInteractive Media & Services
Market Capitalization466.86 billion USD1,560.05 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNasdaqNasdaq
Listing DateJuly 9, 1986May 18, 2012
Security TypeCommon StockCommon Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

COST
META
GSPC
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Costco Wholesale (COST) vs. Meta Platforms (META), 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 Costco Wholesale (COST) and Meta Platforms (META). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Costco Wholesale (COST) and Meta Platforms (META)
MetricCOSTMETA
Total Return (1Y)14.87%3.46%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)24.84%26.39%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)16.92%14.05%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

COST
META
GSPC
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Costco Wholesale (COST) vs. Meta Platforms (META), 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 Costco Wholesale (COST) and Meta Platforms (META). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Costco Wholesale (COST) and Meta Platforms (META)
MetricCOSTMETA
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)20.30%41.68%
Beta (5Y)0.841.26
Max Drawdown (5Y)-31.40%-74.42%
Avg. Volume (3M)2.15M20.91M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

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COST and META 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 Costco Wholesale (COST) and Meta Platforms (META)
MetricCOSTMETA
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)0.52-0.02
Sortino Ratio (1Y)0.77-0.03

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Both Costco Wholesale (COST) at 28.40% and Meta Platforms (META) at 32.26% sit in the top peer quartile for ROE, suggesting each generates more profit from shareholders’ equity than typical industry peers.

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

28.40%

Max
33.48%
COST
28.40%
Q3
22.31%
Median
15.57%
Q1
7.66%
Min
-2.27%

META

Media & Entertainment industry group

32.26%

Max
49.92%
META
32.26%
Q3
17.95%
Median
7.20%
Q1
-4.53%
Min
-26.31%
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Costco Wholesale (COST) vs. Meta Platforms (META): A comparison of their ROE against their respective Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail and Media & Entertainment industry group benchmarks.

Net Margin (TTM)

Meta Platforms (META) at 31.15% retains a top-quartile share of revenue as profit, ahead of Costco Wholesale (COST) at 3.04%, which keeps about the industry-typical share.

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

3.04%

Max
5.45%
Q3
3.42%
COST
3.04%
Median
2.44%
Q1
1.86%
Min
-0.06%

META

Media & Entertainment industry group

31.15%

Max
32.91%
META
31.15%
Q3
11.75%
Median
5.04%
Q1
-4.17%
Min
-25.14%
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Costco Wholesale (COST) vs. Meta Platforms (META): A comparison of their net margin against their respective Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail and Media & Entertainment industry group benchmarks.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Meta Platforms (META) at 35.41% operates in the top operating margin quartile, ahead of Costco Wholesale (COST) at 3.79%, which runs around its industry’s norm.

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

3.79%

Max
6.81%
Q3
5.49%
Median
3.84%
COST
3.79%
Q1
2.00%
Min
0.97%

META

Media & Entertainment industry group

35.41%

Max
40.16%
META
35.41%
Q3
18.72%
Median
8.63%
Q1
1.90%
Min
-22.08%
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Costco Wholesale (COST) vs. Meta Platforms (META): A comparison of their operating margin against their respective Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail and Media & Entertainment industry group benchmarks.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Costco Wholesale (COST) and Meta Platforms (META)
MetricCOSTMETA
ROE (TTM)28.40%32.26%
ROA (TTM)8.66%14.58%
Net Margin (TTM)3.04%31.15%
Operating Margin (TTM)3.79%35.41%
Gross Margin (TTM)12.77%81.03%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Meta Platforms (META) at 22.17% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Costco Wholesale (COST) at 10.14% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for META.

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Costco Wholesale (COST) vs. Meta Platforms (META): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Only one side can be read here: Meta Platforms (META) reports EPS growth of -1.55%, ranked against its industry; Costco Wholesale (COST) has no EPS growth figure this period.

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Costco Wholesale (COST) vs. Meta Platforms (META): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Costco Wholesale (COST) and Meta Platforms (META)
MetricCOSTMETA
Revenue Growth (YoY)10.14%22.17%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)7.76%19.89%
EPS Growth (YoY)---1.55%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)--39.84%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Costco Wholesale (COST) at 1.06 and Meta Platforms (META) at 1.90 carry current ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges, suggesting balanced short-term liquidity relative to peers.

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

1.06

Max
2.04
Q3
1.45
Median
1.17
COST
1.06
Q1
1.00
Min
0.69

META

Media & Entertainment industry group

1.90

Max
4.69
Q3
2.53
META
1.90
Median
1.52
Q1
0.95
Min
0.28
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Costco Wholesale (COST) vs. Meta Platforms (META): A comparison of their current ratio against their respective Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail and Media & Entertainment industry group benchmarks.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Costco Wholesale (COST) at 0.28 keeps leverage in the lower industry quartile, while Meta Platforms (META) at 0.42 runs a more typical debt-to-equity mix.

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

0.28

Max
2.59
Q3
1.83
Median
1.24
Q1
0.63
COST
0.28
Min
0.01

META

Media & Entertainment industry group

0.42

Max
3.65
Q3
1.69
Median
0.46
META
0.42
Q1
0.17
Min
0.00
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Costco Wholesale (COST) vs. Meta Platforms (META): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against their respective Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail and Media & Entertainment industry group benchmarks.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Costco Wholesale (COST) and Meta Platforms (META)
MetricCOSTMETA
Current Ratio (MRQ)1.061.90
Debt / Equity (MRQ)0.280.42
Net Debt / EBITDA-0.780.28

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Costco Wholesale (COST) at 0.52% and Meta Platforms (META) at 0.35% pay solid, industry-typical yields, sitting squarely within their peers’ usual range.

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

0.52%

Max
2.90%
Q3
1.72%
COST
0.52%
Median
0.43%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

META

Media & Entertainment industry group

0.35%

Max
1.33%
Q3
0.65%
META
0.35%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Costco Wholesale (COST) vs. Meta Platforms (META): A comparison of their dividend yield against their respective Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail and Media & Entertainment industry group benchmarks.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Costco Wholesale (COST) at 26.69% and Meta Platforms (META) at 7.16% keep payout ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges — dividend policies that share earnings without consuming too much of them.

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

26.69%

Max
57.98%
Q3
30.05%
COST
26.69%
Median
11.72%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

META

Media & Entertainment industry group

7.16%

Max
71.43%
Q3
28.98%
META
7.16%
Median
0.00%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Costco Wholesale (COST) vs. Meta Platforms (META): A comparison of their payout ratio against their respective Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail and Media & Entertainment industry group benchmarks.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Costco Wholesale (COST) and Meta Platforms (META)
MetricCOSTMETA
Dividend Yield (TTM)0.52%0.35%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)26.69%7.16%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Meta Platforms (META) at 20.82 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Costco Wholesale (COST) at 50.75 sits in the richer quartile — COST needs stronger growth or earnings quality to justify the premium.

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

50.75

COST
50.75
Max
50.75
Q3
33.64
Median
22.19
Q1
16.09
Min
9.28

META

Media & Entertainment industry group

20.82

Max
51.21
Q3
28.90
META
20.82
Median
17.98
Q1
11.53
Min
1.64
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Costco Wholesale (COST) vs. Meta Platforms (META): A comparison of their P/E ratio against their respective Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail and Media & Entertainment industry group benchmarks.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Both Costco Wholesale (COST) at 1.54 and Meta Platforms (META) at 6.46 command a richer price per dollar of sales than most peers, sitting in the upper P/S ratio quartile of their industries.

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

1.54

COST
1.54
Max
1.54
Q3
0.81
Median
0.47
Q1
0.26
Min
0.02

META

Media & Entertainment industry group

6.46

Max
7.43
META
6.46
Q3
3.82
Median
1.40
Q1
0.70
Min
0.00
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Costco Wholesale (COST) vs. Meta Platforms (META): A comparison of their P/S ratio against their respective Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail and Media & Entertainment industry group benchmarks.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both look rich against book: Meta Platforms (META) at 5.73 sits in the upper P/B ratio quartile, and Costco Wholesale (COST) at 13.04 prices even higher, above its industry range.

COST

Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail industry group

13.04

COST
13.04
Max
10.15
Q3
6.27
Median
3.70
Q1
1.85
Min
0.93

META

Media & Entertainment industry group

5.73

Max
11.45
META
5.73
Q3
5.30
Median
1.84
Q1
0.77
Min
-2.61
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Costco Wholesale (COST) vs. Meta Platforms (META): A comparison of their P/B ratio against their respective Consumer Staples Distribution & Retail and Media & Entertainment industry group benchmarks.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Costco Wholesale (COST) and Meta Platforms (META)
MetricCOSTMETA
P/E Ratio (TTM)50.7520.82
P/S Ratio (TTM)1.546.46
P/B Ratio (MRQ)13.045.73
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)1.45%1.08%