Costco Stock Price Today (COST) on November 17, 2025: Shares Slip as Wall Street Debates Valuation

Costco Wholesale Corporation (NASDAQ: COST) ended Monday, November 17, 2025, at about $912.6 per share, logging a drop of roughly 1.1% in a session where major U.S. indexes also fell sharply ahead of key economic data and Nvidia’s earnings. ^[1] At this level, Costco stock sits about 15% below its 52‑week high near $1,078 and a few percent above its 52‑week low around $872, keeping it in the middle of its recent range after a choppy autumn for retail. ^[2]

Despite that pullback, fresh research and fund‑flow data released today still frame Costco as a high‑quality, premium‑valued compounder: fair‑value models cluster around $1,055–$1,080 per share, while Wall Street’s average 12‑month price target sits near $1,063.88, implying mid‑teens percentage upside from today’s close. ^[3]

Costco stock price today: key figures for November 17, 2025

Here’s how Costco traded in today’s session based on closing and intraday data:

Closing price (regular session): about $912.59, down roughly 1.13% from Friday’s close around $922.98. ^[4]
Today’s trading range: roughly $908.8 (intraday low) to about $924.9 (intraday high), showing a moderate intraday swing as markets sold off into the close. ^[5]
Opening price: a touch above $922 per share, meaning Costco spent most of the day trading below the open as sentiment weakened. ^[6]
Volume: around 1.61 million shares, notably lighter than the roughly 2.29 million‑share average over the last month—about 70% of typical recent turnover. ^[7]
Market capitalization: roughly $405–$409 billion, depending on the source and whether after‑hours ticks are included. ^[8]
52‑week range:$871.71 (low) to $1,078.23 (high); at ~$912, Costco trades about 15% below its high and 5% above its low. ^[9]
Valuation: trailing P/E around 50.7 and a PEG ratio near 5.5, far richer than most big‑box and consumer‑staples peers. ^[10]

Costco’s board recently declared a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, payable on November 14, 2025, to shareholders of record as of October 31. Annualized at $5.20 per share, today’s price implies a dividend yield of about 0.6% and a payout ratio near 29%, leaving plenty of room for reinvestment in growth. ^[11]

Today’s move in context: macro pressure + a premium multiple

Today’s decline in Costco didn’t happen in isolation. U.S. equities broadly sold off:

Dow Jones Industrial Average: down about 1.2% (‑557 points)
S&P 500: down roughly 0.9%
Nasdaq Composite: off about 0.8% ^[12]

Investors spent the day de‑risking ahead of Nvidia’s mid‑week earnings and fresh macro data, with commentary focusing on AI‑driven volatility and the risk of fewer Federal Reserve rate cuts than markets had hoped for. ^[13] In that context, Costco’s roughly 1.1% slide looks more like part of a risk‑off rotation than a company‑specific meltdown.

At the same time, valuation remains the central debate:

A Simply Wall St update today pegs Costco’s fair‑value estimate at $1,055.97 per share, down slightly from $1,059.55, but still about 15–16% above today’s price, depending on whether you use Friday’s or Monday’s close. ^[14]
MarketBeat’s compiled 12‑month analyst targets show an average price target of $1,063.88, with a high of $1,418 and a low around $907. From ~$912, the consensus implies roughly 16.6% upside, paired with a “Moderate Buy” rating. ^[15]

Put together, Costco is still priced as a premier franchise—a stock you pay up for—yet current models and Wall Street targets say there’s some, but not huge, upside left from here.

Fundamentals driving the Costco story

October sales: value model still resonating

A widely circulated Zacks note—syndicated via Nasdaq and Finviz—argues that Costco’s October sales show its value proposition is very much intact. For the four weeks ended November 2, 2025, the company reported: ^[16]

Net sales of about $21.75 billion, up 8.6% year over year
Comparable sales up 6.6%, building on comp growth of 5.7% in September and 6.3% in August
Membership strength: renewal rates of 92.3% in the U.S. and Canada and 89.8% globally, with paid memberships rising 6.3% to ~81 million
Digital momentum: online sales jumping 16.6% year over year

The same piece highlights the role of Kirkland Signature, Costco’s private‑label brand, which typically offers roughly 15–20% lower prices than comparable national brands—helping members cope with inflation while supporting traffic and loyalty. ^[17]

On valuation, Zacks notes that Costco trades at a forward P/E in the mid‑40s, well above an industry average around the high‑20s, and assigns the stock a Value Score of “D” with a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold)—essentially, a great business at a non‑cheap price. ^[18]

Earnings, margins and dividend support

Several of today’s institutional‑ownership stories on MarketBeat recycle key stats from Costco’s most recent reported quarter: ^[19]

EPS: about $5.87, modestly above consensus around $5.81
Revenue: roughly $86.16 billion, beating expectations near $86.01 billion and up 8.1% year over year
Profitability:net margin around 2.9% and return on equity above 30%
Dividend: quarterly payout of $1.30 per share (annualized $5.20), for a yield near 0.6% at today’s price and a payout ratio in the high‑20% range

Those numbers help explain why, even on a day when the stock is down, the earnings narrative remains solidly positive: Costco is still growing high‑single‑digit on a huge sales base, profits are healthy for a warehouse club, and the dividend is well‑covered.

Consumer backdrop: cautious wallets, holiday borrowing

On the consumer side, TheStreet ran a piece titled “Costco shares troubling customer news as holidays season approaches,” syndicated via Yahoo Finance. The article uses Costco commentary to illustrate a familiar but worrying pattern: Americans tend to keep spending during the holidays even if they have to borrow more to do it, contributing to rising household debt loads despite broader belt‑tightening the rest of the year. ^[20]

For Costco, that backdrop cuts both ways:

It supports near‑term traffic and basket size, especially for value‑oriented bulk purchases.
It also underscores macro risk: if consumers are leaning more on credit to shop, a later pullback or credit‑stress episode could weigh on discretionary categories.

Investor sentiment and valuation debates in today’s coverage

Motley Fool: incredible history, tougher path to “millionaire‑maker” status

A Motley Fool article, widely republished under the headline “Could Costco Help You Become a Millionaire?”, leans into Costco’s astonishing long‑term performance but sounds a note of caution at current prices. ^[21]

Key points from that piece:

Over the last three decades, Costco has delivered a total return north of 16,000% (as of November 14), easily outpacing most retail peers. ^[22]
Shares are now about 14% below their all‑time peak set in February 2025, which naturally tempts long‑term investors to “buy the dip.” ^[23]
However, the article stresses that investors today are paying roughly 50–51 times earnings, a valuation that leaves little margin of safety and lowers the odds that Costco alone will make a small investor a millionaire from here. ^[24]

The takeaway: Costco is still a stellar business, but the Fool argues its future returns from this starting point are unlikely to match its past, especially for investors concentrating too much in a single stock.

Simply Wall St: fair‑value trim, but still room to run

Simply Wall St’s latest note on Costco—surfaced on Yahoo Finance and SwingTradeBot under titles like “How Recent Developments Are Shaping the Costco Investment Story” and “A Fresh Look at Costco (COST) Valuation Following Strong October Sales and Product Mix Shift”—updates its discounted‑cash‑flow style model: ^[25]

Fair‑value estimate nudged down from $1,059.55 to $1,055.97 per share.
At Friday’s close around $922.98, that translated to Costco being about 12–13% “undervalued” in their framework.
With today’s lower price near $912.59, the implied discount to that fair‑value line widens to roughly the mid‑teens.

The author frames this as a “modest undervaluation” of a high‑quality compounder rather than a deep bargain, and notes that narrative shifts around growth and holiday demand can sway those fair‑value estimates quickly.

Zacks & MarketBeat: trending ticker with “Moderate Buy” consensus

Zacks also published “Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST) is Attracting Investor Attention: Here is What You Should Know” today, flagging Costco as one of the most‑searched tickers on its platform and urging investors to look past popularity to fundamentals, earnings trends and valuation. ^[26]

On the rating side:

MarketBeat’s forecast page shows a consensus “Moderate Buy” for Costco with that $1,063.88 average price target, pointing to ~16.6% upside from around $912. ^[27]
Target prices span a low near $907 (roughly today’s low) to a high near $1,418, underscoring the wide range of opinions about how much investors should pay for Costco’s growth. ^[28]
A separate MarketBeat screen of “Retail Stocks to Watch Now – November 17th” lists Costco alongside Amazon, Alibaba, Booking and PDD as one of the highest dollar‑volume retail names of recent sessions, highlighting how heavily traded—and closely watched—the stock has become. ^[29]

Jim Cramer: still a core holding

An Insider Monkey/Finviz summary of Jim Cramer’s remarks on Mad Money highlights that Costco remains a “big position” in his charitable trust. Cramer acknowledges that relative performance versus Walmart has been “painful” at times but continues to view Costco and Walmart as two essential ways American consumers navigate the cost of living, signaling continued long‑term confidence in the name. ^[30]

Institutional ownership: churn beneath the surface

Costco is overwhelmingly institution‑owned, with around 68–69% of shares held by hedge funds and other large investors according to recent 13F‑based compilations. ^[31] Today brought a wave of new institutional‑flow headlines, mostly covering second‑quarter filings:

Funds adding to Costco

Symphony Financial Ltd. Co. increased its Costco stake by a remarkable 15,055%, to about 320,994 shares worth roughly $317.7 million, making Costco its 9th‑largest position and about 1.6% of its portfolio. ^[32]
Nomura Asset Management lifted its position by 6.8%, buying 14,601 shares to reach 228,169 shares (about 0.05% of Costco’s shares outstanding), worth around $225.9 million and accounting for 0.6% of Nomura’s portfolio. ^[33]

Funds trimming or taking profits

Rothschild Investment LLC cut its Costco stake by 8.5%, ending the quarter with 22,223 shares worth roughly $22 million, still its 11th‑largest holding at about 1.4% of its portfolio. ^[34]
Massachusetts Financial Services (MFS) reduced its holdings by 10%, selling 18,001 shares and finishing with 162,705 shares valued around $161 million. ^[35]
Dorsey & Whitney Trust Co. LLC trimmed its position by 3.5%, selling 333 shares to hold 9,099 shares valued near $9.0 million. ^[36]
PAX Financial Group cut its stake by 23.1%, leaving 1,178 shares worth about $1.17 million after selling 354 shares in the quarter. ^[37]

Across these filings, MarketBeat also reiterates that Costco beat earnings estimates, paid its regular dividend and that insiders have sold about 10,320 shares of stock (~$9.6 million) over the last quarter, leaving total insider ownership at roughly 0.18% of shares outstanding. ^[38]

The big picture: institutional investors are actively rebalancing, but there’s no sign of a wholesale exodus. Some are clearly locking in long‑term gains, while others view recent weakness as a chance to build sizable positions in a still‑dominant retailer.

What today’s Costco stock price means for investors

Putting all of today’s data points together, Costco’s November 17 story looks like this:

The bull case, as reinforced today

Business momentum remains strong. October sales showed mid‑single‑digit to high‑single‑digit comp growth, robust e‑commerce gains and record membership metrics, even in a cautious consumer environment. ^[39]
Membership economics are exceptional. Renewal rates above 90% in North America, close to 90% globally, and a growing base of higher‑spending Executive members continue to underpin Costco’s defensive, subscription‑like revenue stream. ^[40]
Balance sheet and dividend are healthy. Low leverage, strong cash generation and a modest payout ratio support regular dividend growth and occasional special dividends when conditions allow. ^[41]
Analysts still see upside. Consensus targets cluster in the low‑$1,000s, with mid‑teens percentage upside from today’s price, and ratings tilt toward Buy/Outperform, even as some firms trim their targets. ^[42]

The cautious view, also loud in today’s headlines

Valuation is demanding. A 50x+ earnings multiple and a sub‑1% dividend yield leave little margin for error if growth slows or margins compress. Multiple analysts and commentators—from Zacks to Motley Fool to Simply Wall St—highlight the risk of paying too much for even a great business. ^[43]
Consumer‑debt concerns are rising. Reports of shoppers relying more on borrowing to sustain holiday spending suggest that Costco’s short‑term sales strength may be coming against a backdrop of increasing household financial strain. ^[44]
Insider selling and institutional trimming. While not extreme, the combination of insiders cashing out shares and several big funds trimming positions reinforces the idea that some sophisticated holders see better risk‑reward elsewhere at current prices. ^[45]

What to watch next

Looking beyond today’s closing print, Costco investors will be focused on:

Upcoming sales and earnings releases. Costco’s investor‑relations calendar shows upcoming monthly sales updates and the next earnings call in December, which will provide a clearer read on holiday‑season traffic, ticket size and membership trends. ^[46]
Macro data and rate expectations. With the S&P 500 and Nasdaq slipping below key technical levels today, ongoing volatility around rates, inflation and AI‑driven tech stocks could continue to weigh on high‑multiple names like Costco. ^[47]

For long‑term investors, the story remains familiar: Costco is an elite operator with a sticky membership base and steady growth, but today’s stock price already reflects a lot of that quality. Whether Costco stock is attractive at ~$912 depends heavily on your time horizon, risk tolerance and views on valuation—not just on today’s 1% move.

Disclaimer: This article is for information and news purposes only and does not constitute financial advice, investment recommendation, or a solicitation to buy or sell any security. Always do your own research or consult a licensed financial advisor before making investment decisions.

Charlie Munger about Costco COST valuation (DJCO 2022)