If You'd Invested $1,000 in Costco Stock 10 Years Ago, Here's How Much You'd Have Today
Key Points
Costco's dependable revenue and profit gains have significantly lifted the stock since March 2016.
Drastically improving market sentiment has been an important tailwind for investors over the years.
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Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ: COST) continues to prove to investors that it's worthy of their hard-earned savings. Share prices are already up 13% in 2026 (as of March 19). At the same time, the S&P 500 has lost 3.5% of its value.
This continues an impressive run for the warehouse-club retailer. If you'd invested $1,000 in this leading retail stock 10 years ago, here's how much you'd have today.
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Costco has been a magnificent portfolio holding. Over the past decade, shares generated a total return of 659%. This phenomenal gain would've turned a $1,000 initial investment 10 years ago into $7,590 right now. Given the market's love affair with technology and artificial intelligence (AI) stocks, the fact that a boring retailer can be such a winning investment is a breath of fresh air.
The company reported solid financial gains. Net sales and net income were up 137% and 241%, respectively, between fiscal 2015 and fiscal 2025 (ended Aug. 31, 2025).
Costco is an elite business when it comes to stability and predictability. It's a safe holding due to its steady fundamentals in all economic scenarios.
The market certainly appreciates this. Costco stock's current price-to-earnings ratio of 50.7 is 73% more expensive than it was exactly 10 years ago. It's also well about the 10-year average P/E of 39. While the stock has done well, it's also trading at a premium that isn't favorable for new investors unless they are planning to hold the stock for the long term. A lot of growth is already priced into this stock.
Should you buy stock in Costco Wholesale right now?
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Neil Patel has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Costco Wholesale. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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