BJ’S WHOLESALE CLUB HOLDINGS, INC. vs COSTCO WHOLESALE CORP /NEW, two Discount Stores stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
Where BJ and COST diverge most: on implied growth (priced in), BJ reads -2.1% and COST reads +27.0%; on p/s, BJ reads 0.55 and COST reads 1.39. The rest of the comparable metrics sit closer together. On valuation, today's BJ price has a different growth bar priced in than COST (-2.1% implied for BJ vs +27.0% for COST); the higher figure is the steeper assumption to clear, not a better or worse stock. What BJ's price implies is a bet that sits within the historical range (whole-company basis). What COST's price implies is a demanding bet versus history and the cohort (whole-company basis). The bull and bear cases for each are in their full reports below.
| Metric | BJ | COST |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $98.54 | $946.73 |
| Market cap | $12.6B | $420.8B |
| Sector | Discount Stores | Discount Stores |
| Stage | Mature | Mature |
| Implied growth (priced in) | -2.1% | +27.0% |
| P/E | 21.6 | 45.6 |
| P/B | 5.73 | 11.75 |
| P/S | 0.55 | 1.39 |
| EV/EBITDA | 11.4 | 28.3 |
| Revenue growth | +9.0% | +10.1% |
| Operating margin | 4.0% | 4.0% |
| Net margin | 2.6% | 3.0% |
| Return on equity | 27.1% | 25.8% |
| Return on assets | 7.4% | 10.4% |
| Return on invested capital | 27.8% | 22.0% |
| FCF yield | 2.9% | 2.2% |
| Dividend yield | — | 0.6% |
| Debt / equity | 0.29 | 0.17 |
| Current ratio | 0.73 | 1.06 |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 4.41 | 8.77 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 7 / 9 | 7 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.