COST vs JNJ: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of Costco Wholesale Corporation and Johnson & Johnson — fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-04-11.
Costco Wholesale Corporation · Consumer Defensive
$1,002.88
-35.4% upside to fair value
Grade C
High Quality
VS
Johnson & Johnson · Healthcare
$238.46
-11.8% upside to fair value
Med Conviction
Grade C+
QuantHub Verdict
JNJ has more upside to fair value
(-11.8%).
JNJ trades at a lower forward P/E
(20.2x).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
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Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
COST |
JNJ |
| Current Price |
$1,002.88 |
$238.46 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$648.03 |
$210.28 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
-35.4%
|
-11.8%
|
| Market Cap |
$444.9B |
$574.7B |
| Forward P/E |
52.1x
|
20.2x
|
| EV / EBITDA |
31.0x
|
13.3x
|
| Price / Sales |
1.6x
|
6.2x
|
| Price / FCF |
49.0x
|
29.4x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+3.4%
|
+6.1%
|
| Gross Margin |
12.9%
|
72.8%
|
| Operating Margin |
3.8%
|
27.2%
|
| Return on Equity |
28.8%
|
32.87%
|
| Dividend Yield |
0% |
2.18% |
| FCF Yield |
2.04%
|
3.4%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Strong Buy
|
Moderate Buy
|
Investment Thesis
Costco Wholesale Corporation operates a global membership-based warehouse club model with over 900 warehouses across 14 countries, generating $254 billion in fiscal 2024 revenue. The company benefits from a durable competitive moat driven by scale advantages, a loyal membership base with high renewal rates, and superior employee retention through better wages and benefits. Despite steady revenue …
Johnson & Johnson is a high-quality healthcare conglomerate focused exclusively on Innovative Medicine and MedTech following the Kenvue spin-off. The company delivered $94.2B in FY2025 revenue with 6% operational growth, generated $19.7B in free cash flow, and guided for $99.5-100.5B in 2026 operational sales (above consensus). However, at $238 the stock trades at a P/S of 6.15x, well above the 5…
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
COST |
JNJ |
| Zone Low |
$486.02 |
$157.71 |
| Zone High |
$550.83 |
$178.74 |
| In Buy Zone? |
No
|
No
|