P/E ratio for Costco (COST)

P/E ratio history for Costco from 2001 to 2023

PE ratio at the end of each year

P/E ratio for similar companies or competitors

Company	P/E ratio	P/E ratio differencediff.	Country
PriceSmart PSMT	24.9	-68.06%	🇺🇸 USA
Walmart WMT	18.3	-76.53%	🇺🇸 USA
Target TGT	18.0	-76.92%	🇺🇸 USA
Dollar General DG	11.0	-85.82%	🇺🇸 USA
Dollar Tree DLTR	12.7	-83.66%	🇺🇸 USA
Big Lots BIG	-0.0253	-100.03%	🇺🇸 USA
Five Below FIVE	21.5	-72.42%	🇺🇸 USA

How to read a P/E ratio?

The Price/Earnings ratio measures the relationship between a company's stock price and its earnings per share. A low but positive P/E ratio stands for a company that is generating high earnings compared to its current valuation and might be undervalued. A company with a high negative (near 0) P/E ratio stands for a company that is generating heavy losses compared to its current valuation.

Companies with a P/E ratio over 30 or a negative one are generaly seen as "growth stocks" meaning that investors typically expect the company to grow or to become profitable in the future.
Companies with a positive P/E ratio bellow 10 are generally seen as "value stocks" meaning that the company is already very profitable and unlikely to strong growth in the future.