Costco Wholesale Corp. (NASDAQ:COST)

Revenue Trends by Region

The revenue in the United States showed a generally upward trend from 2020 to 2025, increasing from $8,871 million in 2020 to a peak of $13,625 million in 2024 before slightly declining to $12,868 million in 2025. This indicates strong growth in the U.S. market over the years, with a slight contraction in the most recent period.

Canada’s revenue also displayed growth over the period, rising from $1,310 million in 2020 to $1,907 million in 2025. However, it exhibited more volatility compared to the U.S., with noticeable dips in 2023 before recovering in 2024 and stabilizing.

Other International revenues consistently increased each year, progressing from $2,061 million in 2020 to $3,341 million in 2025. This steady growth reflects expanding international operations and market penetration.

Inventory Trends

Merchandise inventories increased significantly from $12,242 million in 2020 to $18,116 million in 2025. Despite some fluctuations, the overall trend is upward, reflecting increased investment in stock levels, possibly due to business growth or strategic inventory accumulation.

There was a slight decline in inventory levels in 2023 compared to 2022, but inventories rebounded again afterward. The fluctuations in inventory may correspond to seasonal adjustments or supply chain dynamics.

Overall Insights

The data indicates consistent revenue growth across all regions with a particularly robust increase in the U.S. and Other International segments. Canada showed a more uneven growth pattern but still ended higher than at the start of the period.

The increasing merchandise inventory levels suggest the company is scaling up its operations or anticipating greater sales volumes. The alignment of inventory growth with revenue trends supports the notion of business expansion and potential market demand increases.

Minor declines in certain years highlight the presence of market fluctuations and operational adjustments, but the general direction is positive for both revenue and inventory metrics.

The financial data reveals several notable trends in the annual reported and inventory LIFO reserve adjusted metrics over the six-year period.

Merchandise Inventories

The reported merchandise inventories increased consistently from 12,242 million USD in 2020 to a peak of 18,647 million USD in 2024, followed by a slight decline to 18,116 million USD in 2025. The adjusted inventory values, accounting for LIFO reserves, closely parallel the reported figures, with a notable divergence in 2022 where adjusted inventories are higher (18,345 million USD vs. 17,907 million USD). This suggests that inventory valuation adjustments had a more pronounced impact during that year.

Current Assets

Reported current assets exhibit a steady upward trend over the period, growing from 28,120 million USD in 2020 to 38,380 million USD in 2025. The adjusted current assets follow a similar trajectory, with the adjustment notably increasing the figure in 2022 from 32,696 million USD to 33,134 million USD. For other years, the adjusted and reported figures are identical, indicating that inventory adjustments had a material effect on current assets only in 2022.

Total Assets

Total assets rose steadily throughout the period, from 55,556 million USD in 2020 to 77,099 million USD in 2025. The adjusted total assets account for inventory reserve differences primarily in 2022, increasing from 64,166 million USD to 64,604 million USD compared to the reported figure. In other years, there is no difference between reported and adjusted totals, reflecting the impact of inventory valuation adjustments on the asset base in select periods.

Stockholders’ Equity

The reported total stockholders’ equity exhibited growth from 18,284 million USD in 2020 to 29,164 million USD in 2025, with some fluctuations during the period, including a decline in 2021 followed by significant increases in subsequent years. The adjusted equity figures remain equal to the reported values each year except in 2022, where the adjustment increases equity from 20,642 million USD to 21,080 million USD. This indicates that inventory valuation changes had a positive effect on equity in that year.

Net Income Attributable

Reported net income attributable to the company showed a consistent upward trend, increasing from 4,002 million USD in 2020 to 8,099 million USD in 2025, nearly doubling over the period. The adjusted net income figures mirror this trend but include a significant adjustment in 2022, raising net income from 5,844 million USD to 6,282 million USD, while in 2023 the adjustment reduces net income from 6,292 million USD to 5,854 million USD. This variability indicates that LIFO reserve adjustments impacted reported earnings differently across these years, enhancing reported profitability in 2022 and reducing it in 2023, with no adjustments noted in other years.

Overall, the data indicates steady growth in assets, equity, and earnings over the observed period, with inventory valuation adjustments affecting reported figures primarily in 2022 and 2023. These adjustments influenced inventories, current assets, total assets, stockholders’ equity, and net income variably, highlighting the importance of inventory accounting methods on the financial presentation in certain years. Despite these adjustments, the general financial position and profitability trends demonstrate consistent improvement.

Liquidity Trends

The current ratio, both reported and adjusted, demonstrates relative stability with minor fluctuations over the periods analyzed. It begins at 1.13 in 2020, decreases to 1.00 in 2021, and remains close to this value through 2025, fluctuating between 0.97 and 1.07. This indicates a generally consistent short-term liquidity position with no significant trend towards either strengthening or weakening.

Profitability Margins

The net profit margin shows an overall upward trend. The reported margin increases from 2.45% in 2020 to 3.00% in 2025, reflecting gradual improvement in profitability. The adjusted net profit margin displays some variability, notably a dip in 2023 to 2.46% from 2.82% in 2022, but recovers to match the reported margin by 2025. This suggests that adjustments related to inventory LIFO reserve affect profit margin measurements in some years but ultimately converge.

Asset Efficiency

Total asset turnover, both reported and adjusted, trends upward from 2.94 in 2020 to peak around 3.57 in 2024, before a slight decline to approximately 3.50 in 2025. This indicates improving efficiency in using assets to generate revenue over the majority of the period.

Financial Leverage

Financial leverage shows a downward trend over time. Starting at about 3.04 in 2020, it rises to 3.37 in 2021, then steadily declines to 2.64 by 2025 in both reported and adjusted figures. This trend points to a gradual reduction in reliance on debt or other leveraged financing sources, suggesting a more conservative capital structure.

Return on Equity (ROE)

Reported ROE experiences an overall increase, rising from 21.89% in 2020 to a peak of 31.19% in 2024, before declining slightly to 27.77% in 2025. Adjusted ROE follows a similar pattern but shows higher values in some years, such as 29.8% in 2022 versus 28.31% reported, and a lower value in 2023 at 23.36%. These fluctuations highlight the influence of inventory reserve adjustments on profitability measures related to shareholder equity.

Return on Assets (ROA)

The reported ROA exhibits steady growth from 7.2% in 2020 to 10.5% in 2025, indicating improved profitability relative to the asset base. The adjusted ROA is consistently higher in several years, reaching 9.72% in 2022 compared to 9.11% reported, but drops below the reported figure in 2023 to 8.48%. This variability reflects the accounting impact of LIFO reserve adjustments on asset valuation and profitability.

Overall Insights

The financial data reveals a generally positive trajectory in profitability and operational efficiency, with net profit margin, asset turnover, ROE, and ROA all improving over the long term. Liquidity remains stable, while financial leverage gradually declines, indicating a shift toward lower financial risk. Adjustments for inventory LIFO reserve marginally affect certain profitability and leverage metrics but do not alter the overall trends.

The analysis of the reported and inventory LIFO reserve adjusted financial data reveals several notable trends over the examined periods.

Current Assets

The reported current assets have demonstrated a generally upward trend from 28,120 million USD in 2020 to 38,380 million USD in 2025. The adjusted current assets, which account for the inventory LIFO reserve, closely follow this trajectory, with a slight deviation observed in 2022, where the adjusted figure (33,134 million USD) exceeds the reported amount (32,696 million USD). This suggests that the inventory adjustments have a measurable impact during this period, potentially reflecting changes in inventory valuation methods or cost flows.

Current Ratio

The reported current ratio exhibits some variability over the years. It began at 1.13 in 2020, decreased to 1.00 in 2021, and remained slightly above 1.00 in the subsequent years before dipping below 1.00 in 2024 (0.97) and recovering to 1.03 in 2025. The adjusted current ratio, accounting for inventory reserves, follows an almost identical pattern with marginal differences, indicating minimal impact of LIFO adjustments on the liquidity assessment.

Overall Insights

The steady increase in current assets over the six-year span indicates a growth in short-term resources. However, the fluctuations and temporary dip below unity in the current ratio around 2024 may hint at a momentary tightening of liquidity or an increase in current liabilities relative to assets. The close alignment between reported and adjusted figures suggests that inventory valuation adjustments have limited influence on the liquidity ratios, maintaining consistency in the financial health portrayal.

The financial data exhibits a consistent upward trend in net income attributable to the company over the observed periods. Reported net income increased steadily from 4002 million US dollars in the earliest period to 8099 million US dollars in the latest period. Adjusted net income shows a similar pattern, with a slight deviation observed in the middle periods but ultimately converging with the reported figures in the latest years.

Regarding net profit margins, the reported net profit margin gradually improved from 2.45% to 3.00% over the time frame. This indicates a steady enhancement in profitability relative to revenue. The adjusted net profit margin follows a comparable trajectory, although minor fluctuations occur mid-cycle, reflecting adjustments that temporarily affect margin calculations, but the overall trend remains positive.

Net Income

The reported net income shows a persistent growth pattern, with an increase of over 100% when comparing the earliest and latest years. This suggests effective management of operations and revenue growth contributing to higher profitability.

Adjusted net income aligns closely with reported net income except for a notable increase in the 2022 period, reflecting LIFO reserve adjustments. Despite this, the subsequent years demonstrate alignment between reported and adjusted figures, indicating stability in inventory valuation impacts over time.

Net Profit Margins

The reported net profit margin enhances steadily, rising from the low 2.4% range to 3% by the last period. This steady improvement signifies an increasing efficiency in converting revenue into net profit.

The adjusted net profit margin demonstrates a similar upward trend but experienced a dip in the 2023 period, likely attributable to inventory valuation adjustments impacting cost of goods sold and profitability temporarily. However, margins recover and match reported margins by the final period, reflecting normalization of these effects.

Overall, the data reveals positive financial momentum, with increasing net income and improving profitability margins, both in reported and inventory reserve adjusted terms. The company's financial performance appears resilient, with adjustments for inventory accounting methods causing temporary but manageable variations in profitability metrics.

The analysis of the financial data over the reported periods reveals several key trends in the company's asset base and efficiency in asset utilization.

Total Assets

The total assets have shown a consistent upward trend from August 2020 through August 2025. Starting at approximately 55.6 billion US dollars, the total assets increased steadily each year to reach around 77.1 billion US dollars by August 2025. This indicates sustained growth in the company's asset base over the six-year period.

The adjusted total assets, which account for the inventory LIFO reserve, closely mirror the reported total assets with a minor adjustment visible only in the 2022 period where adjusted assets are marginally higher than reported, suggesting a small impact from the inventory accounting adjustment. Overall, the adjustments do not significantly affect the trend in total assets.

Total Asset Turnover

The total asset turnover ratio, which measures efficiency in using assets to generate sales, shows an improving trend from 2.94 times in 2020 to a peak level around 3.57 times in 2024, followed by a slight dip to 3.5 times in 2025. This pattern reflects enhanced operational efficiency over the years with minor fluctuations.

The adjusted total asset turnover ratios exhibit an almost identical pattern, indicating that inventory LIFO reserve adjustments have negligible impact on the efficiency measure. This consistency emphasizes the stability of asset usage efficiency regardless of the inventory accounting method applied.

In summary, the company has demonstrated steady growth in total assets alongside improvements in total asset turnover efficiency. The inventory LIFO reserve adjustments have minimal effect on the total asset values and turnover ratios, suggesting that the reported figures accurately represent the operational and asset efficiency performance during the covered periods.

The financial data reveals a general upward trend in both reported and adjusted total assets over the examined periods. Total assets increased steadily from approximately 55.6 billion US dollars in 2020 to around 77.1 billion US dollars by 2025, indicating consistent growth in the asset base.

In conjunction with asset growth, total stockholders’ equity, both reported and adjusted for the LIFO reserve, showed a rising pattern with some fluctuations. Equity increased from about 18.3 billion US dollars in 2020 to nearly 29.2 billion US dollars in 2025. A notable increase occurred between 2021 and 2023, where equity rose significantly, suggesting improved net asset value during that period. However, there was a slight decline or stagnation in equity in 2024 compared to 2023 before rising again in 2025.

The financial leverage ratio, a measure of the company's use of debt relative to equity, generally improved over the years, showing a decrease from 3.04 in 2020 to 2.64 by 2025 on an adjusted basis. This declining leverage ratio suggests a modest reduction in reliance on debt financing or growth in equity outpacing liabilities, enhancing the company’s financial stability. A peak in leverage is observed in 2021, followed by a downward trend, indicating some deleveraging efforts or changes in capital structure.

Comparing reported and adjusted figures indicates that the LIFO reserve adjustment did not materially alter the overall trends but subtly refined equity and leverage measurements, particularly noticeable in the years 2022 and onward. This adjustment provides a more accurate reflection of the company’s financial position concerning inventory accounting.

Key Observations:

1. Consistent growth in total assets, rising approximately 39% from 2020 to 2025.

2. Stockholders’ equity generally increased, with a substantial rise between 2021 and 2023, and some fluctuations afterward.

3. Financial leverage decreased over the period, indicating reduced debt usage or relatively stronger equity growth.

4. LIFO reserve adjustments modestly affected equity and leverage values but maintained the overall growth and leverage reduction trends.

The financial data reveals several noteworthy trends in the annual performance and equity structure adjusted for inventory LIFO reserve of the company over a six-year period.

Net Income Trends

The reported net income attributable to the company has shown a consistent upward trajectory, increasing from $4,002 million in 2020 to $8,099 million in 2025. There is a significant jump between 2023 and 2024, where net income rises from $6,292 million to $7,367 million. The adjusted net income follows a similar pattern but displays some variations, notably in 2022 and 2023; adjusted net income peaks at $6,282 million in 2022 but slightly dips to $5,854 million in 2023 before rising again.

Stockholders’ Equity

Reported total stockholders’ equity exhibits overall growth from $18,284 million in 2020 to $29,164 million in 2025. A dip is observed in 2021 and again slightly in 2024, with equity decreasing from $25,058 million in 2023 to $23,622 million in 2024 before recovering in 2025. The adjusted equity values align closely with reported figures, with minor increases noted in 2022 due to adjustments for the LIFO reserve.

Return on Equity (ROE)

The reported ROE percentage shows variability but generally maintains a high level, starting at 21.89% in 2020, peaking near 31.19% in 2024, and then slightly decreasing to 27.77% in 2025. The adjusted ROE closely mirrors the reported ROE but reveals a relatively higher value in 2022 (29.8% vs. 28.31%) and a lower value in 2023 (23.36% vs. 25.11%), indicating that the LIFO adjustment impacts profitability measures to some degree in these years.

Insights and Observations

The net income increase coupled with relatively stable or growing equity suggests enhanced profitability and efficient equity utilization over time. The divergence between reported and adjusted figures in certain years suggests inventory accounting adjustments impact reported profitability and equity measures. The fluctuations in ROE imply variability in earnings efficiency relative to equity, which may stem from operational or accounting changes during the period examined.

The financial data indicates a consistent upward trajectory in net income, total assets, and profitability measures over the observed periods. Both reported and inventory LIFO reserve adjusted figures reveal a generally positive growth trend, with some fluctuations in adjusted metrics reflecting the impact of inventory accounting adjustments.

Net Income

Reported net income attributable to the company exhibits steady growth from $4,002 million in 2020 to $8,099 million projected in 2025. Adjusted net income follows a similar pattern, with a notable increase from $4,002 million in 2020 to $6,282 million in 2022, followed by a slight dip to $5,854 million in 2023 before rebounding to $8,099 million in 2025. This fluctuation suggests that inventory adjustments impact net income recognition in certain years, but the overall earnings trend remains positive.

Total Assets

The reported total assets rise consistently from $55,556 million in 2020 to an estimated $77,099 million in 2025. Adjusted total assets are marginally higher than reported figures in 2022 ($64,604 million compared to $64,166 million) but converge with reported assets in subsequent periods. This indicates minor adjustments related to inventory valuations, which slightly affect asset base calculations but do not alter the overall growth trajectory.

Return on Assets (ROA)

The reported ROA improves steadily from 7.2% in 2020 to a peak of 10.55% in 2024, maintaining a similar level of 10.5% in 2025. Adjusted ROA, which accounts for LIFO reserve inventory effects, demonstrates higher variability. It rises sharply to 9.72% in 2022, then declines to 8.48% in 2023 before matching the reported figures in 2024 and 2025. This pattern reflects the influence of inventory accounting on profitability metrics, particularly in intermediate years.

Overall, the company exhibits strong financial growth with increasing profitability and asset accumulation. Adjustments for inventory accounting moderately affect income and ROA calculations in select periods but do not materially impact the underlying positive trends. The data suggests effective asset utilization and improving earnings performance over the six-year horizon.