Costco Wholesale Corporation vs iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF — how do they compare? Costco Wholesale Corporation trades at $921.56 (market cap $408.78B), while iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF trades at $97.25. The key difference: Costco Wholesale Corporation pays a 0.64% dividend while iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF pays none. Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| COST | IEFA | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $408.78B | — |
Sector | Consumer Staples | Broad Market / Factor |
52-Week High | $1.09K | $98.56 |
52-Week Low | $849.63 | $81.70 |
Enterprise Value | $396.92B | — |
Dividend Yield | 0.64% | — |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
Costco (COST) trades at $926.43, up 1.11% with strong fundamentals including 11.3% March sales growth and consistent earnings beats. The stock faces technical headwinds with bearish moving averages but maintains solid profitability with $8.1B net income and expanding margins. Recent membership fee increases and warehouse expansion support long-term growth, though high valuation multiples present near-term pressure.
Outlook remains positive with analyst consensus at $1,120 price target (65% buy ratings), but investors should monitor valuation sustainability amid technical weakness. Key risks include competitive pressures and economic sensitivity, while institutional accumulation and strong cash flow generation provide fundamental support.
IEFA trades at $96.15, down 1.1% on the day, with technical indicators showing a neutral to bearish short-term bias. The ETF provides exposure to developed international markets outside the US and Canada, offering diversification benefits amid S&P 500 concentration concerns. Recent news highlights IEFA's competitive 3.30% dividend yield and low 0.07% expense ratio compared to peers like VXUS and EEM.
The outlook remains balanced with potential upside from Fed rate cuts and international diversification benefits, offset by currency risks and developed market monetary policy tightening. IEFA's low-cost structure and dividend yield provide defensive characteristics, though performance depends heavily on international economic conditions and currency movements.
Trailing returns across standard periods
The leading warehouse club, Costco has 815 stores worldwide (at the end of fiscal 2021), with most sales derived in the United States (72%) and Canada (14%). It sells memberships that allow customers to shop in its warehouses, which feature low prices on a limited product assortment. Costco mainly caters to individual shoppers, but roughly 20% of paid members carry business memberships. Food and sundries accounted for 40% of fiscal 2021 sales, with non-food merchandise 29%, warehouse ancillary and other businesses (such as fuel and pharmacy) nearly 17%, and fresh food 14%. Costco's warehouses average around 146,000 square feet
Read more on COST →IEFA tracks the MSCI EAFE Investable Market Index, offering broad exposure to large, mid, and small-cap stocks in developed markets across Europe, Australasia, and the Far East. It serves as a low-cost core holding for international diversification, excluding the U.S. and Canada.
Read more on IEFA →