Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ:COST)

The financial data over the analyzed periods reveals several notable trends and patterns. Overall, the company exhibits improvements in operational efficiency, profitability, and a progressive reduction in leverage.

Total Asset Turnover

Both reported and adjusted total asset turnover ratios show a steady increase from 2020 through 2025, reaching peaks around 3.5 to 3.6 before a slight dip in the final period. This indicates enhanced efficiency in utilizing assets to generate sales over time.

Current Ratio

The current ratio fluctuates mildly, with values hovering around 1.0 to 1.07. There is a slight decline in 2024, dipping below 1.0 in the reported ratio, indicating a minor reduction in short-term liquidity, but this recovers in 2025. The adjusted current ratio follows a similar pattern with slightly higher stability.

Debt to Equity and Debt to Capital Ratios

Both reported and adjusted debt to equity ratios exhibit a declining trend throughout the years, moving from approximately 0.45–0.58 in 2020 down to 0.25–0.34 in 2025. This denotes a decrease in reliance on debt financing relative to equity. Similarly, debt to capital ratios decrease steadily, indicating a stronger equity position and reduced financial risk.

Financial Leverage

Reported and adjusted financial leverage metrics decrease from about 3.0-3.4 to approximately 2.6-2.9 by 2025, reflecting a reduction in the use of debt and other liabilities to finance assets.

Net Profit Margin

The net profit margin remains generally stable with slight upward movement, particularly in reported figures which rise from 2.45% in 2020 to 3.0% in 2025. Adjusted margins show some variability but ultimately demonstrate improvement by the end of the period.

Return on Equity (ROE)

ROE experiences growth with some fluctuation. Reported ROE increases from just under 22% to a peak above 31% before settling around 27-28%. Adjusted ROE mirrors this trend, peaking lower but maintaining a general upward trajectory.

Return on Assets (ROA)

Reported ROA shows consistent growth from approximately 7.2% to over 10.5%, indicating enhanced effectiveness in asset utilization to generate profits. Adjusted ROA trends similarly, with some variability but an overall positive progression.

In summary, the company demonstrates improved asset efficiency and profitability over the periods analyzed. Concurrently, it has reduced its leveraged position, strengthening its financial structure. Liquidity, as measured by current ratios, remains stable with slight fluctuations but no concerning declines. Profitability metrics such as net profit margin, ROE, and ROA reflect positive trends, underpinning a healthy operational and financial performance trajectory.

The financial data exhibits consistent growth in net sales over the six-year period, increasing from $163,220 million in 2020 to $269,912 million in 2025. This upward trend indicates strong revenue expansion, reflecting effective sales and possibly an increasing customer base or enhanced product offerings.

Total assets also show a steady increase, rising from $55,556 million in 2020 to $77,099 million in 2025. This growth in assets suggests ongoing investment in resources, infrastructure, or inventory that supports the company's expanding operations. Adjusted total assets, which may exclude certain non-operating items, have a similar trajectory, moving from $55,150 million in 2020 to $76,507 million in 2025, confirming the asset base expansion on an operational basis.

In terms of asset efficiency, the reported total asset turnover ratio demonstrates an improvement from 2.94 in 2020 to a peak of 3.57 in 2024, with a slight dip to 3.50 in 2025. This indicates that the company has been increasingly effective in using its assets to generate sales over time, though the recent small decline may suggest some moderation in efficiency gains. The adjusted total asset turnover ratio corroborates this pattern, advancing from 2.96 in 2020 to 3.60 in 2024 before a slight reduction to 3.53 in 2025.

Overall, the data reveals a positive trend of growing sales supported by expanding asset bases, combined with improving asset utilization efficiency. The slight downturn in turnover ratios in the last year warrants attention to ensure that asset management continues to optimize sales generation as the company scales.

Current Assets

Current assets exhibited a consistent upward trend over the observed periods. Starting at 28,120 million US dollars in 2020, the figure grew steadily each year, reaching 38,380 million US dollars by 2025. This reflects an overall increase in liquid and short-term assets available to the company.

Current Liabilities

Current liabilities also increased annually, from 24,844 million US dollars in 2020 to 37,108 million US dollars in 2025. The growth in liabilities slightly outpaced the growth in current assets in some years, indicating a rising obligation to settle short-term debts.

Reported Current Ratio

The reported current ratio started at 1.13 in 2020, demonstrating a strong liquid position. It decreased to 1.00 in 2021 and remained close to this level in subsequent years, with minor fluctuations between 0.97 and 1.07. By 2025, the ratio slightly improved to 1.03. This pattern suggests liquidity remained relatively stable but experienced a slight decline in the middle years before modest recovery.

Adjusted Current Assets and Adjusted Current Ratio

Adjusted current assets closely tracked the values of current assets, showing a consistent increase across all periods. The adjusted current ratio mirrored the reported current ratio with small variances, indicating that adjustments made to current assets did not significantly change liquidity assessments. The adjusted ratio declined from 1.13 in 2020 to 1.00 in 2021, later fluctuating around the benchmark level of 1. The lowest point was 0.97 in 2024, with a recovery to 1.03 in 2025.

Overall Insights

Over the six-year span, both current assets and current liabilities increased steadily, with liabilities growing at a slightly faster pace, which exerted downward pressure on the current ratio. Although liquidity ratios decreased after 2020, they remained close to or slightly above the threshold of 1, indicating the company maintained an ability to cover short-term liabilities by current assets. Fluctuations in the ratio reflect changes in working capital management or shifts in asset and liability composition, but no extreme liquidity issues are evident. The alignment between reported and adjusted ratios suggests that the financial adjustments made were minimal in impact, providing a consistent view of the company’s short-term financial health.

The financial data reveals several noteworthy trends over the observed periods, particularly in the company’s debt levels, equity, and leverage ratios.

Total Debt

The total debt steadily decreased from US$8,297 million in 2020 to US$7,267 million in 2025. This represents a consistent reduction in nominal debt levels, indicating a strategic move to lower the company’s debt burden across the six-year span.

Total Costco Stockholders’ Equity

Equity exhibited overall growth, increasing from US$18,284 million in 2020 to US$29,164 million in 2025. Despite some fluctuations, notably a dip in 2024, the equity base expanded significantly, which suggests strengthening of the company’s capital structure and retained earnings growth.

Reported Debt to Equity Ratio

The ratio declined markedly from 0.45 in 2020 to 0.25 in 2025, reflecting a reduction in financial leverage when considering reported figures. This indicates a favorable shift towards lower relative indebtedness compared to shareholder equity.

Adjusted Total Debt

When adjusted for additional factors, total debt values are higher than reported figures but similarly show a decreasing trend, dropping from US$11,086 million in 2020 to US$9,935 million in 2025. This corroborates the trend observed with the reported debt but provides a more comprehensive view of indebtedness.

Adjusted Total Equity

The adjusted equity values follow the upward trend of the reported equity, increasing from US$18,964 million in 2020 to US$29,296 million in 2025. Consistent growth in adjusted equity further emphasizes the company’s strengthening financial base.

Adjusted Debt to Equity Ratio

This ratio exhibits a decrease from 0.58 in 2020 to 0.34 in 2025. Although the adjusted ratio remains higher than the reported ratio, the declining trend aligns with efforts to reduce leverage and improve financial stability.

In summary, the data indicate a strategic reduction in debt levels accompanied by significantly increased equity. These changes have led to a pronounced reduction in both reported and adjusted debt-to-equity ratios, signaling an overall improvement in the company’s capital structure and risk profile over the six years analyzed.

The financial data reveals a consistent decline in total debt over the observed periods, decreasing from $8,297 million in 2020 to $7,267 million in 2025. This downward trend indicates a strategic effort to reduce liabilities. In contrast, total capital exhibits fluctuations, initially decreasing slightly from 2020 to 2021, followed by a general upward movement, reaching $36,431 million in 2025, which suggests an ongoing expansion of the company's equity base and overall capital structure.

Reported debt-to-capital ratio shows a gradual decrease from 0.31 in 2020 to 0.20 in 2025. This implies improving leverage metrics over time, as the company reduces its reliance on debt relative to its capital. The notable dip starting in 2022, continuing through 2025, highlights stronger capital adequacy and potentially enhanced creditworthiness.

Adjusted total debt and adjusted total capital follow similar patterns to their reported counterparts but on a higher scale, indicating the presence of adjustments for possibly off-balance sheet items or refinements in accounting methods. Adjusted total debt drops from $11,086 million in 2020 to $9,935 million in 2025, while adjusted total capital rises from $30,050 million to $39,231 million over the same period. The adjusted debt-to-capital ratio decreases from 0.37 to 0.25, reinforcing the trend of declining leverage and increased capital strength when considering adjusted figures.

Overall, the company demonstrates a clear strategic direction towards reducing debt burden and strengthening capital position, resulting in improved financial stability and lower leverage ratios. These trends suggest prudent financial management and a focus on long-term solvency and risk mitigation.

Total debt

Declined steadily from 2020 to 2025, indicating debt reduction efforts.

Total capital

Increased overall with some fluctuation, suggesting capital growth and reinforcement.

Reported debt to capital ratio

Decreased from 0.31 to 0.20, indicating improving leverage and capital adequacy.

Adjusted total debt

Fell from $11,086 million to $9,935 million, mirroring debt reduction when adjustments are considered.

Adjusted total capital

Rose from $30,050 million to $39,231 million, indicating expanding capital base on adjusted terms.

Adjusted debt to capital ratio

Declined from 0.37 to 0.25, confirming improving leverage on an adjusted basis.

The financial position exhibits a consistent growth pattern over the analyzed periods, marked by expanding asset and equity bases. Both total assets and adjusted total assets demonstrate a steady upward trajectory, increasing from approximately 55 billion US dollars in 2020 to nearly 77 billion US dollars by 2025. This growth indicates ongoing expansion in the company's asset holdings.

Total stockholders' equity and adjusted total equity also reflect significant growth, rising from around 18 billion US dollars in 2020 to almost 29 billion US dollars in 2025. Despite a slight dip between 2023 and 2024, equity values maintain a generally positive trend, suggesting enhanced shareholder value and capital accumulation over time.

Financial leverage ratios, both reported and adjusted, display a general decline from initial higher levels, indicating a reduction in reliance on debt financing relative to equity. The reported financial leverage decreases from 3.04 in 2020 to 2.64 in 2025, while adjusted financial leverage follows a similar pattern, falling from 2.91 to 2.61 over the same period. Although there is some variability, particularly with increases noted around 2024, the overall trend suggests improving financial stability and a conservative capital structure.

Total Assets

Consistent year-over-year growth with total assets increasing by approximately 39% from 2020 to 2025, indicating asset expansion.

Total Stockholders’ Equity

Marked increase in equity base, growing by nearly 60% overall, reflecting stronger capitalization and shareholder investment.

Reported Financial Leverage

Gradual decline in leverage ratio, implying decreased debt dependency and enhanced financial health.

Adjusted Total Assets and Equity

Mirroring reported figures, adjusted totals confirm the growing asset and equity positions with minor variances, adding robustness to the financial interpretation.

Adjusted Financial Leverage

Decreasing trend consistent with reported leverage, supporting the conclusion of reduced financial risk.

In summary, the company’s financial data indicate effective growth management with increasing asset and equity bases coupled with a prudent approach to leveraging. The gradual reduction in financial leverage ratios points toward strengthening financial resilience and a balanced capital structure over the examined periods.

The financial data over the analyzed periods indicates a consistent upward trend in key performance metrics for the company. Net income attributable to the company has shown steady growth each year, rising from 4,002 million US dollars in 2020 to 8,099 million US dollars in 2025. This demonstrates a strong capacity for profitability expansion over the span of six years.

Net sales have similarly experienced continuous growth, increasing from 163,220 million US dollars in 2020 to 269,912 million US dollars in 2025. The growth in net sales supports the expansion in net income, suggesting effective revenue generation and potential market share increases.

The reported net profit margin has remained relatively stable with a slight upward trend, increasing from 2.45% in 2020 to 3.00% in 2025. This steady improvement in profitability margin indicates enhanced operational efficiency or favorable cost management alongside revenue growth.

Adjusted net income, which includes noncontrolling interests, also follows a generally positive trajectory, growing from 4,334 million US dollars in 2020 to 8,077 million US dollars in 2025. However, there is a slight dip in adjusted net profit margin in the middle years, decreasing from 2.78% in 2021 to 2.49% in both 2022 and 2023, before rebounding to 2.99% by 2025. This fluctuation may signify temporary cost pressures or other factors impacting adjusted profitability during those years, with recovery evident in the later period.

Overall, the data reflects consistent financial growth supported by rising sales and increasing net income. Profit margins have been maintained or slightly improved despite some intermediate fluctuations in adjusted profitability, pointing to resilient operational performance and effective financial management throughout the periods analyzed.

Net Income

Increased consistently from 4,002 million USD (2020) to 8,099 million USD (2025).

Net Sales

Rose steadily from 163,220 million USD (2020) to 269,912 million USD (2025).

Reported Net Profit Margin

Maintained a stable upward trend from 2.45% (2020) to 3.00% (2025).

Adjusted Net Income

Generally increased from 4,334 million USD (2020) to 8,077 million USD (2025), with slight margin fluctuations.

Adjusted Net Profit Margin

Dipped to 2.49% in 2022 and 2023 from 2.78% in 2021 but recovered to 2.99% by 2025.

Net Income Attributable to Costco

The net income has demonstrated a consistent upward trend over the reported periods. Starting from $4,002 million in 2020, it increased steadily each year, reaching $8,099 million by 2025. This reflects a compound growth and indicates strong profitability improvements for the company during this timeframe.

Total Costco Stockholders’ Equity

Stockholders’ equity also exhibited an overall growth trend, rising from $18,284 million in 2020 to $29,164 million in 2025. Although there was a slight decline observed in 2021 and again in 2024, the equity base was substantially higher in 2025 compared to the initial period, indicating strengthening net asset value.

Reported Return on Equity (ROE)

The reported ROE showed some fluctuation throughout these years. Starting at 21.89% in 2020, it peaked at 31.19% in 2024 before declining slightly to 27.77% in 2025. Despite the variations, the ROE levels remained relatively high, suggesting efficient utilization of equity in generating profits.

Adjusted Net Income Including Noncontrolling Interests

Adjusted net income figures followed a trend similar to the net income attributable, increasing steadily from $4,334 million in 2020 to $8,077 million in 2025. The adjustment factors did not significantly alter the upward trajectory of profitability over the periods presented.

Adjusted Total Equity

Adjusted equity increased from $18,964 million in 2020 to $29,296 million in 2025, mirroring the trend observed in total stockholders’ equity. Minor declines appeared during 2021 and 2024, but the overall upward movement suggests growth in the company’s capital base on an adjusted basis.

Adjusted Return on Equity (Adjusted ROE)

Adjusted ROE experienced a rise from 22.85% in 2020 to a peak of 30.38% in 2024, before settling at 27.57% in 2025. These fluctuations align closely with the reported ROE trends, indicating consistent performance measures when noncontrolling interests are considered.

Summary

Overall, the financial data reveals continuous growth in profitability and equity over the six-year span. Both reported and adjusted net incomes roughly doubled, signaling strong operational success. Although equity bases grew with some intermittent declines, the return on equity remained robust, suggesting effective capital management. The company exhibits a solid financial position with sustained efficiency in generating returns from shareholders’ investments.

The financial data reveals consistent growth in profitability and asset base over the analyzed periods. Net income attributable to the entity increased steadily from $4,002 million to $8,099 million, more than doubling across the six-year span. Total assets also demonstrated a continuous upward trend, moving from $55,556 million to $77,099 million, indicating ongoing asset accumulation and likely expansion activities.

Return on assets (ROA), a key indicator of efficiency in utilizing assets to generate profit, generally improved during the period. The reported ROA rose from 7.2% to a peak of 10.55% before slightly declining to 10.5% in the final year. This pattern suggests an overall enhancement in operational efficiency, with a minor fluctuation in the latest period.

Looking at adjusted figures, which incorporate certain noncontrolling interests and adjusted asset values, the adjusted net income showed growth from $4,334 million to $8,077 million. Adjusted total assets increased correspondingly, from $55,150 million to $76,507 million. Adjusted ROA figures followed a similar trajectory, improving from 7.86% up to 10.56%, with a temporary dip in the intermediate years before recovering.

Profitability

Net income and adjusted net income nearly doubled over the period, indicating strong earnings growth. The increasing ROA reinforces the conclusion that the company managed to generate higher returns from its asset base over time.

Asset Growth

The steady rise in total and adjusted total assets points to ongoing investment and expansion efforts. Asset growth did not outpace income growth excessively, supporting a healthy balance between asset accumulation and profit generation.

Operational Efficiency

Both reported and adjusted ROA display an upward trend with minor fluctuations, reflecting an overall enhancement in efficient asset utilization. The upward ROA trend signifies that the company improved its capacity to convert assets into profits.

Intermediate Fluctuations

The adjusted ROA experienced a dip in certain years but ultimately recovered, indicating periodic challenges or changes in accounting adjustments that did not affect the long-term positive trend.

In summary, the financial indicators exhibit positive trends in profit growth, asset expansion, and improved efficiency. The data suggests a solid financial performance with sustained growth and enhanced capacity to generate returns on investments over the analyzed periods.