COST vs UNH: Which Is the Better Buy?
Side-by-side comparison of Costco Wholesale Corporation and UnitedHealth Group Incorporated — fair value, conviction, valuation metrics, and QuantHub research signals.
Updated 2026-04-22.
Costco Wholesale Corporation · Consumer Defensive
$999.89
-20.7% upside to fair value
Grade D
High Quality
VS
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated · Healthcare
$353.52
+45.0% upside to fair value
Grade B
High Quality
QuantHub Verdict
UNH has more upside to fair value
(+45.0%).
UNH trades at a lower forward P/E
(26.7x).
These are model outputs — not personalized investment advice.
See all research →
Valuation & Fundamentals
| Metric |
COST |
UNH |
| Current Price |
$999.89 |
$353.52 |
| Fair Value Estimate |
$793.02 |
$512.60 |
| Upside to Fair Value |
-20.7%
|
+45.0%
|
| Market Cap |
$443.6B |
$320.9B |
| Forward P/E |
51.9x
|
26.7x
|
| EV / EBITDA |
30.9x
|
16.1x
|
| Price / Sales |
1.6x
|
0.7x
|
| Price / FCF |
48.8x
|
16.3x
|
| Revenue Growth YoY |
+9.2%
|
+2.0%
|
| Gross Margin |
12.9%
|
18.8%
|
| Operating Margin |
3.8%
|
4.2%
|
| Return on Equity |
28.8%
|
12.4%
|
| Dividend Yield |
0% |
0% |
| FCF Yield |
2.05%
|
6.13%
|
| Analyst Consensus |
Buy
|
Strong Buy
|
Investment Thesis
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…
UnitedHealth Group Incorporated operates as a leading healthcare company with two main platforms: UnitedHealthcare, providing health benefits coverage, and Optum, offering information and technology services. The company benefits from a durable competitive moat due to its scale, integrated platforms, and broad market reach serving over 170 million consumers. Despite strong revenue growth of 12% y…
Accumulation Zones
| Metric |
COST |
UNH |
| Zone Low |
$594.76 |
$384.45 |
| Zone High |
$674.07 |
$435.71 |
| In Buy Zone? |
No
|
Yes
|