Walmart price-to-earnings ratio 44.4 times, Costco 54.6 times
The analyst preferred Walmart over Costco. Walmart’s trailing 12-month earnings-based price-to-earnings ratio is 44.4 times, while Costco’s is 54.6 times. Nvidia, Microsoft, and Amazon were suggested as alternatives.

Walmart and Costco are considered defensive businesses. Both companies are viewed as having strong competitive advantages in consumer retail. However, the article said that the share prices of both stocks are currently relatively high.
Walmart’s trailing 12-month earnings-based price-to-earnings ratio (P/E) is 44.4 times. Costco’s trailing 12-month P/E is 54.6 times. The P/E ratio indicates how many times earnings a share price represents. The article viewed these levels as overvalued.
The analyst recommended Walmart over Costco. The reasons given were the view that Walmart was adopting AI more quickly and that its history of dividend payments was more reliable. The article described Walmart’s dividend history as more consistent.
The article also mentioned Nvidia, Microsoft, and Amazon as buying alternatives. It presented these stocks as growth-stock alternatives. The article’s publication date is 2026-05-25.
The article focused on the two retailers’ defensive characteristics, the pressure from their current valuations, and the adoption of AI and dividend histories cited as reasons for Walmart’s advantage. It did not separately present any additional figures or long-term forecasts.
Sources: The Motley Fool
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