Costco Wholesale Corporation vs Ulta Beauty Inc — how do they compare? Costco Wholesale Corporation trades at $943.08 (market cap $420.05B), while Ulta Beauty Inc trades at $568.7 (market cap $24.12B). The key difference: Costco Wholesale Corporation is far larger — about 17.4× Ulta Beauty Inc's market cap, and Costco Wholesale Corporation pays a 0.62% dividend while Ulta Beauty Inc pays none. Which is the better fit depends on your goals — on Pluang, investors hold Costco Wholesale Corporation for 132 Days and Ulta Beauty Inc for 92 Days on average.
| COST | ULTA | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $420.05B | $24.12B |
Volume | 2,087,565 | 457,598 |
Sector | Consumer Staples | Consumer Cyclical |
52-Week High | $1.09K | $706.82 |
52-Week Low | $849.63 | $450.75 |
Typical Hold Time | 132 Days | 92 Days |
Enterprise Value | $407.33B | $26.43B |
Dividend Yield | 0.62% | — |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
COST trades at $944.20, up 0.21% on the day, with a bullish technical signal from moving averages but overbought RSI readings. The company reported strong March 2026 sales growth of 11.3% year-over-year (Costco Wholesale Corporation, April 8, 2026) and has shown consistent revenue and net income growth, with fiscal 2025 revenue at $275.24B and net income at $8.10B. Analyst consensus is strongly bullish with a $1,100 price target, though valuation ratios like a P/E of 45.66 are elevated.
The outlook remains positive due to robust membership fee growth and expansion, but risks include high valuation sensitivity and competitive pressures. Upside is supported by strong institutional buying and earnings beats, though any market pullback could pressure the stock given its premium multiples.
ULTA Beauty trades at $545.48, down 0.33% on the day, with a bullish technical outlook supported by moving averages. The company reported strong Q2 2026 earnings beat and raised 2026 guidance, though Q4 2025 missed expectations. Valuation metrics show a P/E of 20.55 and P/S of 1.92, with robust profitability including 46.12% ROE. Analyst consensus is strongly bullish with 59.57% buy ratings and a $624.93 price target, representing 14.6% upside potential.
ULTA presents a compelling growth story with e-commerce momentum and expansion into wellness categories, though margin compression and flat traffic pose near-term challenges. The stock offers attractive upside to analyst targets but faces execution risks amid consumer spending pressures. Institutional ownership remains strong with recent buying activity from major funds.
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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 →With more than 1,300 stores and a partnership with Target, Ulta Beauty is the largest specialized beauty retailer in the U.S. The firm offers makeup (43% of 2021 sales), fragrances, skin care, and hair care products (20% of 2021 sales), and bath and body items. Ulta offers private-label products and merchandise from more than 500 vendors. It also offers salon services, including hair, makeup, skin, and brow services, in all stores. Most Ulta stores are approximately 10,000 square feet and are in suburban strip centers. Ulta was founded in 1990 and is based in Bolingbrook, Illinois.
Read more on ULTA →