COST vs MUSA vs PSMT Stock Comparison

Costco Wholesale, Murphy USA and Pricesmart Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
MUSA Murphy USA Inc.
$531.00 +3.8% 1M +34.8% 1Y
Market cap
$9.40B
P/E
15.2x
Revenue (TTM)
$21.48B
Div. yield
–
Convenience Stores Consumer Staples
5 wins
PSMT Pricesmart Inc
$166.49 -4.7% 1M +36.2% 1Y
Market cap
$4.94B
P/E
29.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$5.88B
Div. yield
–
Warehouse Clubs Consumer Staples
2 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Murphy USA leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Murphy USA 5, Costco Wholesale 4, Pricesmart 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionCOSTMUSAPSMTLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $436.10B $9.40B $4.94B COST
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 47.3x 15.2x 29.6x MUSA
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 46.8x 14.9x 28.1x MUSA
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +10.1% +10.3% +11.5% PSMT
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 3.0% 2.9% 2.8% COST
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 21.7% 24.3% 11.9% MUSA
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA -1.1x 1.7x -0.5x COST
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +6.7% +34.8% +36.2% PSMT
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +15.1%/yr +26.7%/yr +18.2%/yr MUSA
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 20.0% 39.5% 28.3% COST
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 51/100 54/100 53/100 MUSA

Percentile Scorecard

COSTMUSAPSMT

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisCOSTMUSAPSMT
Valuation 8 #37 of 40 54 #19 of 40 26 #30 of 40
Growth 78 #9 of 38 65 #14 of 38 73 #11 of 38
Profitability 74 #10 of 36 77 #9 of 36 60 #15 of 36
Financial Health 85 #7 of 40 21 #32 of 40 80 #9 of 40
Shareholder Returns 11 #25 of 28 56 #13 of 28 26 #21 of 28
Overall 51 54 53
  • COST ranked among 41 companies in Staples Retail
  • MUSA ranked among 41 companies in Staples Retail
  • PSMT ranked among 41 companies in Staples Retail

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodCOSTMUSAPSMTSPY
1 month +7.5%+3.8%-4.7% -0.2%
3 months +2.6%-11.7%-13.0% +3.9%
6 months -0.2%+2.1%+7.1% +8.2%
Year to date +15.1%+31.6%+35.7% +12.9%
1 year +6.7%+34.8%+36.2% +12.3%
3 years +82.7%+45.9%+130.7% +87.4%
3 years, per year +22.3%+13.4%+32.2% +23.3%
5 years +102.3%+225.8%+130.6% +67.9%
5 years, per year +15.1%+26.7%+18.2% +10.9%
10 years +557.6%+672.5%+93.4% +261.1%
10 years, per year +20.7%+22.7%+6.8% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureCOSTMUSAPSMTSPY
Volatility, 1Y 20.0%39.5%28.3% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 19.7%40.3%29.6% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.19-0.670.63 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.340.881.28 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -31.5%-35.8%-34.5% -25.4%
From 52-week high -9.3%-14.8%-15.9% -1.2%
52-week high $1,094.32$623.43$197.90 $779.14
52-week low $850.00$356.57$114.94 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleCOSTMUSAPSMT
P/E now vs peer median 47.7xmedian 22.1x 15.9xmedian 22.1x 30.2xmedian 22.1x
P/S now vs peer median 1.5xmedian 0.5x 0.5xmedian 0.5x 0.9xmedian 0.5x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 29.6xmedian 9.7x 9.7xmedian 9.7x 13.8xmedian 9.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median 46.9xmedian 17.5x 18.0xmedian 17.5x 53.3xmedian 17.5x
P/B now vs peer median 12.3xmedian 2.9x 12.5xmedian 2.9x 3.5xmedian 2.9x
PEG now vs peer median 3.51median 1.19 1.89median 1.19 1.89median 1.19

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsCOSTMUSAPSMT
Revenue $303.15B $21.48B $5.88B
Gross profit $38.88B $2.62B $1.04B
Operating income $11.69B $921.40M $261.02M
Net income $9.23B $617.20M $166.59M
Free cash flow $9.38B $541.50M $96.39M
EPS (diluted) $20.76 $33.27 $5.51
Cash & equivalents $20.21B $175.40M $220.79M
Total debt $6.16B $2.19B $169.41M
Shares (diluted) 444.43M 18.55M 30.24M
Enterprise value $359.38B $9.03B $3.66B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricCOSTMUSAPSMT
P/E 47.7x 15.9x 30.2x
P/FCF 46.9x 18.0x 53.3x
P/Operating cash flow 27.8x 9.9x 16.7x
P/S 1.5x 0.5x 0.9x
P/B 12.3x 12.5x 3.5x
P/Tangible book 12.3x 15.2x 3.5x
EV/EBITDA 29.6x 9.7x 13.8x
EV/EBIT 36.3x 12.8x 19.1x
EV/Revenue 1.4x 0.5x 0.8x
EV/FCF 45.3x 21.7x 51.6x
EV/Operating cash flow 26.8x 11.9x 16.2x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 3.51 1.89 1.89

Growth

14 metrics
MetricCOSTMUSAPSMT
Revenue growth (1Y) 10.1% 10.3% 11.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 7.8% -1.1% 10.0%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 10.0% 13.3% 13.6%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 9.4% 4.1% 11.0%
Operating income growth (1Y) 12.5% 26.6% 12.3%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 12.9% 2.9% 12.3%
Net income growth (1Y) 13.9% 25.8% 12.6%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 13.6% 2.3% 15.1%
EPS growth (1Y) 14.0% 34.1% 12.0%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 13.6% 8.4% 16.0%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 18.6% 18.1% 17.8%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 12.6% 7.2% 2.3%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 19.7% 48.5% -6.6%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 11.6% 3.1% -12.8%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricCOSTMUSAPSMT
Gross margin 12.8% 12.2% 17.7%
EBITDA margin 4.7% 5.6% 6.1%
Operating margin 3.9% 4.3% 4.4%
Pretax margin 4.0% 3.8% 3.9%
Net margin 3.0% 2.9% 2.8%
FCF margin 3.1% 2.5% 1.6%
Operating cash flow margin 5.2% 4.6% 5.2%
Return on equity 26.6% 85.6% 11.7%
Return on assets 10.5% 12.4% 6.5%
Return on invested capital 21.7% 24.3% 11.9%
Return on capital employed 26.7% 23.7% 15.3%
Asset turnover 3.5x 4.3x 2.3x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 1.7x 1.6x 1.8x
Stock comp / revenue 0.3% – 0.4%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricCOSTMUSAPSMT
Debt / assets 6.9% 43.0% 6.5%
Debt / equity 0.2x 2.8x 0.1x
Net debt / EBITDA -1.1x 1.7x -0.5x
Debt / FCF 0.7x 4.0x 1.8x
Liabilities / assets 59.8% 84.6% 44.1%
Equity / assets 40.2% 15.4% 55.9%
Interest coverage 80.6x 7.9x 15.6x
Current ratio 1.1x 0.9x 1.2x
Quick ratio 0.6x 0.5x 0.4x
Cash ratio 0.5x 0.2x 0.4x
Altman Z-score 9.28 7.40 5.97

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricCOSTMUSAPSMT
Dividend yield 0.6% 0.5% 0.8%
Net buyback yield 0.2% 4.5% 0.2%
Shareholder yield 0.8% 5.0% 1.0%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusCOSTMUSAPSMT
Forward P/E 46.8xFY2027 14.9xFY2026 28.1xFY2027
EPS, next fiscal year $21.22FY2027 $35.60FY2026 $5.92FY2027
EPS growth, next FY +2.2%FY2027 +43.0%FY2026 +9.6%FY2027
EPS growth, the year after +22.4% -7.9% +23.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $345.44BFY2027 $22.85BFY2026 $6.97BFY2027
Revenue growth, next FY +14.0%FY2027 +17.9%FY2026 +18.6%FY2027
Revenue growth, the year after -4.4% -5.8% +6.3%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersCOSTMUSAPSMT
Held by institutions 73.2% 83.0% 91.1%
Institutions holding 4,210 606 386
Change in shares held, QoQ +5.0% -2.2% +4.4%
Institutions buying 1,921 310 215
Institutions selling 1,705 190 116
Buyers to sellers 1.13 1.63 1.85

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

COSTMUSAPSMT
COST 1.00 0.20 0.25
MUSA 0.20 1.00 -0.02
PSMT 0.25 -0.02 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, COST, MUSA and PSMT?

Costco Wholesale (COST) is the largest by market capitalisation: Costco Wholesale (COST) $436.10B, Murphy USA (MUSA) $9.40B, Pricesmart (PSMT) $4.94B.

Which stock is cheaper, COST, MUSA and PSMT?

Murphy USA (MUSA) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Costco Wholesale (COST) 47.3x, Murphy USA (MUSA) 15.2x, Pricesmart (PSMT) 29.6x). On next year's consensus earnings, Murphy USA (MUSA) is cheapest (Costco Wholesale (COST) 46.8x, Murphy USA (MUSA) 14.9x, Pricesmart (PSMT) 28.1x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Pricesmart (PSMT) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Costco Wholesale (COST) +10.1%, Murphy USA (MUSA) +10.3%, Pricesmart (PSMT) +11.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Costco Wholesale (COST) has the highest net margin (Costco Wholesale (COST) 3.0%, Murphy USA (MUSA) 2.9%, Pricesmart (PSMT) 2.8%). On return on invested capital, Murphy USA (MUSA) leads (Costco Wholesale (COST) 21.7%, Murphy USA (MUSA) 24.3%, Pricesmart (PSMT) 11.9%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Pricesmart (PSMT) returned the most: Costco Wholesale (COST) +6.7%, Murphy USA (MUSA) +34.8%, Pricesmart (PSMT) +36.2%. Over five years, Murphy USA (MUSA) compounded fastest (Costco Wholesale (COST) +15.1%/yr, Murphy USA (MUSA) +26.7%/yr, Pricesmart (PSMT) +18.2%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Costco Wholesale (COST) has been the steadiest (Costco Wholesale (COST) 20.0%, Murphy USA (MUSA) 39.5%, Pricesmart (PSMT) 28.3%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, COST, MUSA and PSMT?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Murphy USA (MUSA) leads on 5. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.