AMZN vs COST: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of Amazon.com, Inc. and Costco Wholesale Corporation — fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-05-20.
Amazon.com, Inc. · Consumer Cyclical
$259.34
+21.8% upside to fair value
Grade B
High Quality
VS
Costco Wholesale Corporation · Consumer Defensive
$999.89
-20.7% upside to fair value
Grade D
High Quality
QuantHub Verdict
AMZN has more upside to fair value
(+21.8%).
AMZN trades at a lower forward P/E
(26.5x).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
See all research →
Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
AMZN |
COST |
| Current Price |
$259.34 |
$999.89 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$316.00 |
$793.02 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
+21.8%
|
-20.7%
|
| Market Cap |
$2,789.8B |
$443.6B |
| Forward P/E |
26.5x
|
51.9x
|
| EV / EBITDA |
16.8x
|
30.9x
|
| Price / Sales |
3.9x
|
1.6x
|
| Price / FCF |
—
|
48.8x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+17.0%
|
+9.2%
|
| Gross Margin |
51.8%
|
12.9%
|
| Operating Margin |
13.1%
|
3.8%
|
| Return on Equity |
21.5%
|
28.8%
|
| Dividend Yield |
0% |
0% |
| FCF Yield |
-0.81%
|
2.05%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Strong Buy
|
Buy
|
Investment Thesis
Amazon delivered a landmark Q1 2026 with revenue of $181.5 billion up 17% year over year and diluted EPS of $2.78 versus the $1.63 consensus, driven by AWS reaccelerating to 28% growth, its fastest pace in fifteen quarters, and a record consolidated operating margin of 13.1%. AWS generated $37.6 billion in revenue at a 37.7% segment operating margin, contributing $14.2 billion in operating income…
Costco Wholesale Corporation operates a global membership-based warehouse club model that leverages scale, low costs, and superior employee retention to deliver consistent revenue and earnings growth. The company reported $269.9 billion in net sales for fiscal 2025 with an 8% year-over-year increase, driven by strong segments in Foods and Sundries and membership fees exceeding $5.65 billion in th…
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
AMZN |
COST |
| Zone Low |
$237.00 |
$594.76 |
| Zone High |
$268.60 |
$674.07 |
| In Buy Zone? |
Yes
|
No
|