Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST): return on invested capital, 10 filed years
ROIC at Costco Wholesale Corporation was 34.1% in FY2026, the newest filed year. Across the 8 computed years from FY2019 it ranged from 24.1% (FY2020) to 34.1% (FY2026), with a median of 29.7%.
Tonight's figure on the company page: 34.1%, recomputed 2026-10-15. The table is each filed year on its own terms, with the formula below; the current figure may use trailing twelve months or, where the explainer says so, a different denominator.
Year by year
| Fiscal year | ROIC | Read from |
|---|---|---|
| FY2017 The filed borrowings do not add up to a total we can stand behind: the filer's own liability subtotals leave room for debt we did not read. | n/a | 10-K, filed 2017-10-18 |
| FY2018 The filed borrowings do not add up to a total we can stand behind: the filer's own liability subtotals leave room for debt we did not read. | n/a | 10-K, filed 2018-10-26 |
| FY2019 | 26.1% | 10-K, filed 2019-10-11 |
| FY2020 | 24.1% | 10-K, filed 2020-10-07 |
| FY2021 | 29.1% | 10-K, filed 2021-10-06 |
| FY2022 | 30.1% | 10-K, filed 2022-10-05 |
| FY2023 | 29.7% | 10-K, filed 2023-10-11 |
| FY2024 | 29.7% | 10-K, filed 2024-10-09 |
| FY2025 | 31.2% | 10-K, filed 2025-10-08 |
| FY2026 | 34.1% | 10-K, filed 2026-10-07 |
How each year is computed
Operating income x (1 - effective tax rate) / (equity + total debt - cash) x 100
Each year is a ratio of lines in that year's filed annual report, with the nightly recompute's own rules for what counts as a filed line. Nothing is estimated, smoothed or filled in: a year that cannot be computed says why.
Read further
A computation on accounts filed with the SEC, not a recommendation and not advice. Past filings do not indicate future results. Risk disclaimer.