Costco Wholesale Corp (COST) — Cash Flow Quality Index
Costco Wholesale Corp (COST) has a Cash Flow Quality Index of 1.57x as of May 2026. Operating cash flow of $3.45 Billion exceeds net income of $2.19 Billion, indicating high earnings quality where cash backs reported profits. Explore how well can Costco Wholesale Corp service its debt to assess how comfortably operating cash covers total debt obligations.
Cash Flow Quality Index
Operating Cash Flow
Net Income
Data as of
Costco Wholesale Corp Cash Flow Quality Index (1989–2025)
Historical Cash Flow Quality Index for Costco Wholesale Corp across 37 annual periods. Values consistently above 1.0x indicate high-quality earnings. For the full cash flow conversion analysis, see Costco Wholesale Corp operating cash flow efficiency.
Annual Cash Flow Quality Index for Costco Wholesale Corp (1989–2025)
Year-by-year earnings quality comparison for Costco Wholesale Corp.
| Year | Quality Index | Operating CF (USD) | Net Income | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1.65x | $13.34 Billion | $8.10 Billion | ▲ +7.0% |
| 2024 | 1.54x | $11.34 Billion | $7.37 Billion | ▼ -12.5% |
| 2023 | 1.76x | $11.07 Billion | $6.29 Billion | ▲ +40.8% |
| 2022 | 1.25x | $7.39 Billion | $5.92 Billion | ▼ -29.1% |
| 2021 | 1.76x | $8.96 Billion | $5.08 Billion | ▼ -19.2% |
| 2020 | 2.18x | $8.86 Billion | $4.06 Billion | ▲ +27.2% |
| 2019 | 1.72x | $6.36 Billion | $3.70 Billion | ▼ -5.5% |
| 2018 | 1.82x | $5.77 Billion | $3.18 Billion | ▼ -26.7% |
| 2017 | 2.48x | $6.73 Billion | $2.71 Billion | ▲ +78.9% |
| 2016 | 1.39x | $3.29 Billion | $2.38 Billion | ▼ -22.1% |
| 2015 | 1.78x | $4.29 Billion | $2.41 Billion | ▼ -6.8% |
| 2014 | 1.91x | $3.98 Billion | $2.09 Billion | ▲ +14.4% |
| 2013 | 1.67x | $3.44 Billion | $2.06 Billion | ▼ -3.6% |
| 2012 | 1.73x | $3.06 Billion | $1.77 Billion | ▼ -16.6% |
| 2011 | 2.07x | $3.20 Billion | $1.54 Billion | ▼ -1.3% |
| 2010 | 2.10x | $2.78 Billion | $1.32 Billion | ▲ +9.1% |
| 2009 | 1.93x | $2.09 Billion | $1.09 Billion | ▲ +13.5% |
| 2008 | 1.70x | $2.18 Billion | $1.28 Billion | ▼ -11.5% |
| 2007 | 1.92x | $2.08 Billion | $1.08 Billion | ▲ +15.8% |
| 2006 | 1.66x | $1.83 Billion | $1.10 Billion | ▼ -1.3% |
| 2005 | 1.68x | $1.78 Billion | $1.06 Billion | ▼ -29.5% |
| 2004 | 2.38x | $2.10 Billion | $882.39 Million | ▲ +13.8% |
| 2003 | 2.09x | $1.51 Billion | $721.00 Million | ▲ +43.7% |
| 2002 | 1.45x | $1.02 Billion | $699.98 Million | ▼ -15.2% |
| 2001 | 1.71x | $1.03 Billion | $602.09 Million | ▲ +1.2% |
| 2000 | 1.70x | $1.07 Billion | $631.44 Million | ▼ -7.2% |
| 1999 | 1.83x | $940.90 Million | $515.30 Million | ▲ +13.8% |
| 1998 | 1.60x | $737.60 Million | $459.80 Million | ▼ -15.1% |
| 1997 | 1.89x | $590.20 Million | $312.20 Million | ▲ +10.3% |
| 1996 | 1.71x | $426.40 Million | $248.80 Million | ▲ +33.7% |
| 1995 | 1.28x | $278.40 Million | $217.20 Million | ▼ -63.7% |
| 1994 | 3.53x | $247.80 Million | $70.10 Million | ▲ +166.7% |
| 1993 | 1.33x | $295.80 Million | $223.20 Million | ▲ +10.3% |
| 1992 | 1.20x | $155.10 Million | $129.10 Million | ▼ -32.1% |
| 1991 | 1.77x | $237.40 Million | $134.10 Million | ▲ +76.2% |
| 1990 | 1.00x | $126.00 Million | $125.40 Million | ▼ -4.3% |
| 1989 | 1.05x | $122.90 Million | $117.00 Million | — |