COST vs MELI: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of Costco Wholesale Corporation and MercadoLibre, Inc. — fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-04-10.
Costco Wholesale Corporation · Consumer Defensive
$1,002.88
-35.4% upside to fair value
Grade C
High Quality
VS
MercadoLibre, Inc. · Consumer Cyclical
$1,767.42
+41.4% upside to fair value
High Conviction
Grade A
QuantHub Verdict
MELI has more upside to fair value
(+41.4%).
MELI trades at a lower forward P/E
(35.0x).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
See all research →
Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
COST |
MELI |
| Current Price |
$1,002.88 |
$1,767.42 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$648.03 |
$2,500.00 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
-35.4%
|
+41.4%
|
| Market Cap |
$444.9B |
$89.6B |
| Forward P/E |
52.1x
|
35.0x
|
| EV / EBITDA |
31.0x
|
18.5x
|
| Price / Sales |
1.6x
|
3.1x
|
| Price / FCF |
49.0x
|
8.9x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+3.4%
|
+39.1%
|
| Gross Margin |
12.9%
|
44.5%
|
| Operating Margin |
3.8%
|
11.1%
|
| Return on Equity |
28.8%
|
33.7%
|
| Dividend Yield |
0% |
0% |
| FCF Yield |
2.04%
|
12.1%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Strong Buy
|
Strong 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 …
MercadoLibre is the dominant e-commerce and fintech ecosystem across Latin America, operating the largest marketplace and digital payments platform in a region with 670M+ people where e-commerce penetration is still under 15%. Revenue grew 39% to $28.9B in FY2025 with $10.8B in free cash flow — a 12% FCF yield at current prices. The company is trading at its 5-year P/S minimum (3.1x) and P/FCF mi…
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
COST |
MELI |
| Zone Low |
$486.02 |
$1,875.00 |
| Zone High |
$550.83 |
$2,125.00 |
| In Buy Zone? |
No
|
Yes
|