How Rising Executive Memberships and Strong Sales Growth at Costco (COST) Have Changed Its Investment Story

• In November 2025, Costco Wholesale reported US$21.75 billion in net sales for October and US$48.33 billion for the first nine weeks of its fiscal year, both up over 8% from the previous year.
• Executive membership initiatives, like exclusive early shopping access, helped boost both member upgrades and sales, pointing to the profitable impact of enhanced loyalty strategies.
• We’ll look at how growth in Executive memberships and membership upgrades shapes Costco’s investment narrative and future prospects.

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Costco Wholesale Investment Narrative Recap

Costco shareholders need to believe that sustained membership growth and high renewal rates can support steady revenue expansion, even as competition and margin pressures persist. The latest sales report, showing 8% year-on-year growth, supports the short term catalyst of robust membership momentum, while margin pressures from higher labor costs remain a key risk; this news does not materially change that balance. One recent announcement directly tied to these catalysts is Costco’s introduction of exclusive early shopping hours for Executive members. This initiative has reportedly increased weekly U.S. sales by around 1% and encouraged upgrades to more profitable membership tiers, further reinforcing Costco’s focus on loyalty-driven growth. Still, against these strong results, investors should not overlook...

Read the full narrative on Costco Wholesale (it's free!)

Costco Wholesale's narrative projects $329.0 billion revenue and $10.4 billion earnings by 2028. This requires 7.0% yearly revenue growth and a $2.6 billion earnings increase from $7.8 billion.

Uncover how Costco Wholesale's forecasts yield a $1060 fair value, a 15% upside to its current price.

Exploring Other Perspectives

Twenty two members of the Simply Wall St Community calculated fair values for Costco stock ranging from US$683.78 to US$1,059.55. With Executive membership upgrades helping to boost top line growth, these wide-ranging estimates highlight why it pays to consider multiple viewpoints before making decisions.

Explore 22 other fair value estimates on Costco Wholesale - why the stock might be worth as much as 15% more than the current price!

Build Your Own Costco Wholesale Narrative

Disagree with existing narratives? Create your own in under 3 minutes - extraordinary investment returns rarely come from following the herd.

• A great starting point for your Costco Wholesale research is our analysis highlighting 2 key rewards and 1 important warning sign that could impact your investment decision.
• Our free Costco Wholesale research report provides a comprehensive fundamental analysis summarized in a single visual - the Snowflake - making it easy to evaluate Costco Wholesale's overall financial health at a glance.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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