Analysis of Debt
Total Debt (Carrying Amount)
Costco Wholesale Corp., balance sheet: debt
US$ in millions
Based on: 10-K (reporting date: 2025-08-31), 10-K (reporting date: 2024-09-01), 10-K (reporting date: 2023-09-03), 10-K (reporting date: 2022-08-28), 10-K (reporting date: 2021-08-29), 10-K (reporting date: 2020-08-30).
- Current Portion of Long-Term Debt
- The current portion of long-term debt displayed fluctuation across the years, with a notable spike in the year ending September 3, 2023, where it reached 1,081 million US dollars. This represents a significant increase compared to adjacent years, where values ranged between 73 and 103 million US dollars. By August 31, 2025, the value decreased sharply to 75 million US dollars, aligning closer to historical lower levels. Overall, this item shows volatility with an unusual peak in 2023.
- Current Finance Lease Liabilities
- Current finance lease liabilities showed an increasing trend from 31 million US dollars in 2020 to a peak of 245 million US dollars in 2022. This was followed by a decrease to 129 million US dollars in 2023, a slight rise to 147 million US dollars in 2024, and a reduction to 78 million US dollars in 2025. The data suggest some variability but generally remains elevated compared to the initial 2020 figure.
- Long-Term Debt, Excluding Current Portion
- Long-term debt, excluding the current portion, demonstrated a downward trend over the observed period. Starting at 7,514 million US dollars in 2020, it declined steadily to 5,377 million US dollars by 2023. Subsequently, there was a small increase to 5,794 million US dollars in 2024, followed by a modest decrease to 5,713 million US dollars in 2025. The overall trend reflects a reduction in long-term debt holding after 2020, with some stabilization in later years.
- Long-Term Finance Lease Liabilities
- Long-term finance lease liabilities consistently increased over the years, starting at 657 million US dollars in 2020 and rising in successive years to reach 1,401 million US dollars by 2025. This steady growth indicates an expanding commitment under finance leases classified as long-term liabilities.
- Total Long-Term Debt, Including Current Portion and Finance Lease Liabilities
- The total long-term debt, inclusive of current portions and finance lease liabilities, peaked at 8,543 million US dollars in 2021. Following this peak, it exhibited a gradual decline over the subsequent years, down to 7,267 million US dollars by 2025. This trend may reflect ongoing debt repayment or restructuring activities, offset partially by increasing finance lease liabilities.
- Summary
- The company’s debt structure over the reported years shows variability in the short-term components, particularly with the current portion of long-term debt and current finance lease liabilities, which experienced peaks and subsequent declines. Long-term debt excluding current portions has generally decreased, suggesting paydown or refinancing efforts. Conversely, long-term finance lease liabilities have steadily increased, indicating growing lease obligations. The overall total long-term debt peaked in 2021 but has been declining since, signifying a reduction in total leverage or reclassification of liabilities. These trends reflect active management of debt portfolio and lease commitments.
Total Debt (Fair Value)
| Aug 31, 2025 | |
|---|---|
| Selected Financial Data (US$ in millions) | |
| Long-term debt, including current portion | 5,370) |
| Finance lease liabilities | 1,479) |
| Total long-term debt, including current portion and finance lease liabilities (fair value) | 6,849) |
| Financial Ratio | |
| Debt, fair value to carrying amount ratio | 0.94 |
Based on: 10-K (reporting date: 2025-08-31).
Weighted-average Interest Rate on Debt
Weighted-average interest rate on debt and finance leases: 2.49%
| Interest rate | Debt amount1 | Interest rate × Debt amount | Weighted-average interest rate2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3.00% | 1,000) | 30) | |
| 1.38% | 1,250) | 17) | |
| 1.60% | 1,750) | 28) | |
| 1.75% | 1,000) | 18) | |
| 4.63% | 1,479) | 68) | |
| Total | 6,479) | 161) | |
| 2.49% | |||
Based on: 10-K (reporting date: 2025-08-31).
1 US$ in millions
2 Weighted-average interest rate = 100 × 161 ÷ 6,479 = 2.49%