Costco vs Walmart
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KIRA’s take AI analyst
I put Costco and Walmart side by side, using each one’s latest annual report. Here is what stands out:
- Walmart is the larger business, with $713.2B of revenue in fiscal 2026 against $303.2B for Costco, about 2.4 times as much.
- Costco grew revenue faster (10.1%, against 4.7%).
- Costco turned more of its sales into free cash flow (3.1% FCF margin, against 2.1%).
- Costco earned a higher return on the capital invested in it (40.7%, against 16.1%).
Who comes out ahead
Of the 11 measures where higher (or lower) is clearly better, how many each company leads.
Costco
COST
6/11
Revenue growth5-year growthFCF marginReturn on capitalReturn on equityNet debt / EBITDA
Walmart
WMT
4/11
Gross marginOperating marginNet marginShare count change
Side by side
Best in the row
| Latest fiscal year | COST FY26 | WMT FY26 |
|---|---|---|
| Size | ||
| Market cap | $446.7B | $959.7B |
| Revenue | $303.2B | $713.2B |
| Free cash flow | $9.4B | $14.9B |
| Net income | $9.2B | $21.9B |
| Growth | ||
| Revenue growth | 10.1% | 4.7% |
| 5-year growth | 9.1% | 5.0% |
| Share count change | −0.1% | −0.7% |
| Profitability | ||
| Gross margin | 12.8% | 24.9% |
| Operating margin | 3.9% | 4.2% |
| Net margin | 3.0% | 3.1% |
| FCF margin | 3.1% | 2.1% |
| Return on capital | 40.7% | 16.1% |
| Return on equity | 28.4% | 23.0% |
| Balance sheet | ||
| Net debt | −$13.7B | $40.8B |
| Net debt / EBITDA | −1.0x | 0.9x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $3.3B | $15.6B |
| Valuation & quality | ||
| P/E | — | 43.4x |
| Piotroski F-score | 7 | 7 |
Ten years
Revenue
Operating margin
Free cash flow
Return on capital
Each company's latest fiscal year; fiscal years end in different months. The best value in each row is highlighted where higher (or lower) is clearly better. Not investment advice.