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COST vs KMB
Which Stock Would AI Choose? Costco Wholesale (COST) vs. Kimberly-Clark (KMB) Stock Comparison
Key Takeaways
- COST delivered strong fiscal Q1 2026 results with 8.3% revenue growth and 11.3% net income increase, driving YTD gains of 17.10% versus KMB's flat YTD return of -0.82%.
- COST trades at a premium trailing P/E of 52.44 with robust membership-driven growth, while KMB offers value at 20.34 P/E and a higher 5.18% dividend yield.
- Both in consumer defensive sector, COST shows superior recent momentum amid retail resilience, contrasting KMB's 26% one-year decline due to slowing growth.
- Recent headwinds include Middle East tensions impacting COST costs and tariff lawsuits, while KMB faces competition and leadership transitions.
- Tickeron's AI robots highlight consumer staples strategies trading COST with solid win rates, signaling positive algorithmic sentiment.
Introduction
This stock comparison examines COST (Costco Wholesale Corporation), a membership-based warehouse retailer, and KMB (Kimberly-Clark Corporation), a leading producer of personal care and hygiene products. Both operate in the consumer defensive sector, offering stability amid market volatility through essential goods demand. Traders seeking relative performance insights and investors eyeing defensive plays with differing growth profiles—retail expansion versus staple brands—will find value in analyzing their recent trajectories, valuations, and market positioning in today's environment.
COST Overview and Recent Performance
Costco Wholesale Corporation (COST) runs membership warehouses offering bulk groceries, electronics, and services globally. In recent market activity, shares have demonstrated resilience, with YTD returns at 17.10% and a current price around $1,008. Fiscal Q1 2026 results showed 8.3% revenue growth and 11.3% net income rise, fueled by strong comparable sales and e-commerce gains. Sentiment remains positive on membership renewals near 90% and traffic strength, though Middle East tensions pose cost risks and tariff refund lawsuits add uncertainty. Trading near its 52-week high of $1,067, COST reflects investor confidence in its defensive growth model despite a high trailing P/E of 52.44.
KMB Overview and Recent Performance
Kimberly-Clark Corporation (KMB) manufactures essential products like diapers, tissues, and wipes under brands such as Huggies and Kleenex. Recent weeks have seen shares hover around $99, with YTD performance at -0.82% and a stark one-year drop of 26.33%, underperforming broader indices. Challenges include slowing organic revenue growth and heightened competition, prompting leadership changes like a new CIO appointment. Analysts note potential undervaluation with fair value estimates above $119, supported by product innovations and dividend appeal. At a trailing P/E of 20.34 and 5.18% yield, KMB trades near its 52-week low of $96, reflecting cautious sentiment amid sector pressures.
Trending AI Robots
Tickeron’s Trending AI Robots page features over 25 top-performing AI trading bots curated from 351 total bots that trade thousands of tickers across stocks, ETFs, and crypto. These bots employ diverse strategies like pattern recognition and momentum trading on timeframes from 15 minutes to days, with standout stats including annualized returns from +16% to +209%, win rates up to 94%, and profit factors exceeding 25. Examples include energy bots at +90% returns and volatility agents at +209% with 76% win rates. Consumer staples bots trade COST, PG, and peers, posting +23% annualized returns and 71% win rates. Ideal for current volatility, these highlight bots suited to market conditions. Explore Trending AI Robots for potential edges in stock comparison and trading.
Head-to-Head Comparison
COST and KMB share consumer defensive exposure but diverge in business models: Costco's high-volume, low-margin warehouse format drives traffic-led growth, while Kimberly-Clark relies on branded essentials with steady recurring demand. Growth drivers favor COST's membership fees (14% rise recently) and international expansion versus KMB's innovation in personal care amid competition. Recent momentum strongly tilts to COST with positive earnings surprises, while KMB contends with revenue slowdowns. Risk factors include geopolitical cost pressures for COST (beta 0.99) and volume erosion for KMB (beta 0.23), trading off growth premium (COST P/E 52x) against value/dividend stability (KMB yield 5.18%). Market sentiment leans bullish on Costco's resilience.
Tickeron AI Verdict
Tickeron’s AI currently favors COST due to superior trend consistency, recent earnings momentum, and inclusion in high-performing consumer staples bots with strong win rates. While KMB offers attractive valuation and stability, Costco's relative positioning and catalysts like sales growth suggest higher probabilistic outperformance in the near term, absent major disruptions.
Disclaimer
The information on this webpage is provided for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as investment advice, a recommendation to purchase or sell any security, or an offer or solicitation related to investments. It does not consider your personal financial situation, goals, or risk profile, and all investing carries inherent risks, including the possibility of losing your entire investment. For more details, please review our full disclaimer. Disclaimers and Limitations
To compare these two companies we present long-term analysis, their fundamental ratings and make comparative short-term technical analysis which are presented below. The conclusion is COST is a Hold and KMB is a Hold.
Long-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a long-term outlook for a ticker by using Fundamental Analysis (FA) ratings. The rating of 1 to 100, where 1 is best and 100 is worst, is divided into thirds. The first third (a green rating of 1-33) indicates that the ticker is undervalued; the second third (a grey number between 34 and 66) means that the ticker is valued fairly; and the last third (red number of 67 to 100) reflects that the ticker is undervalued. We use an FA Score to show how many ratings show the ticker to be undervalued (green) or overvalued (red).
COST’s FA Score shows that 2 FA rating(s) are green whileKMB’s FA Score has 2 green FA rating(s).
- COST’s FA Score: 2 green, 3 red.
- KMB’s FA Score: 2 green, 3 red.
Short-Term Analysis
It is best to consider a short-term outlook for a ticker by using Technical Analysis (TA) indicators. We use Odds of Success as the percentage of outcomes which confirm successful trade signals in the past.
If the Odds of Success (the likelihood of the continuation of a trend) for each indicator are greater than 50%, then the generated signal is confirmed. A green percentage from 90% to 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bullish trend. A red percentage from 90% - 51% indicates that the ticker is in a bearish trend. All grey percentages are below 50% and are considered not to confirm the trend signal.
COST’s TA Score shows that 5 TA indicator(s) are bullish while KMB’s TA Score has 5 bullish TA indicator(s).
- COST’s TA Score: 5 bullish, 5 bearish.
- KMB’s TA Score: 5 bullish, 3 bearish.
Price Growth
COST (@Discount Stores) experienced а +0.14% price change this week, while KMB (@Household/Personal Care) price change was +1.60% for the same time period.
The average weekly price growth across all stocks in the @Discount Stores industry was +2.34%. For the same industry, the average monthly price growth was +2.71%, and the average quarterly price growth was +7.10%.
The average weekly price growth across all stocks in the @Household/Personal Care industry was +0.96%. For the same industry, the average monthly price growth was +3.95%, and the average quarterly price growth was -8.44%.
Reported Earning Dates
COST is expected to report earnings on Jul 29, 2026.
KMB is expected to report earnings on Apr 28, 2026.
Industries' Descriptions
@Discount Stores (+2.34% weekly)Companies in the discount stores industry specialize in offering substantial discounts on a vast array of retail products. Some companies in this industry also operate general merchandise warehouse clubs. Products sold at discount stores are typically similar to those of any department store, but the pricing of the goods is generally much lower (and hence the name “discount”). Think Dollar General Corporation, Dollar Tree, Inc. and Five Below, Inc. Many discount stores target low-income households and/or price-sensitive consumers as their potential market. Discount stores’ profitability could hinge on factors like competitive pricing, sufficient locations, healthy revenue per square foot, and effective advertisement. These store operators could have an edge over other retailers during financial crises or recessions, when many consumers could be looking for less expensive alternatives.
@Household/Personal Care (+0.96% weekly)Household/Personal Care companies sell products for home cleaning and/or personal hygiene and grooming purposes. Products of this industry include detergents, shampoos, soaps, cosmetics, fabric conditioners and infant care fragrances. Procter & Gamble, Unilever, Estee Lauder and Colgate-Palmolive are some of the biggest names in the business. A lot of the products become a necessary part of people’s daily routine, and therefore the industry is relatively less vulnerable to macroeconomic downturns. At the same time, product quality, consumer safety, and ease of use are extremely critical factors for a company to survive competition and earn recognition in this industry.
| COST | KMB | COST / KMB | |
| Capitalization | 444B | 32.8B | 1,354% |
| EBITDA | 14.1B | 3.11B | 453% |
| Gain YTD | 16.109 | -0.822 | -1,960% |
| P/E Ratio | 52.00 | 20.34 | 256% |
| Revenue | 286B | 16.4B | 1,744% |
| Total Cash | 18.2B | 774M | 2,351% |
| Total Debt | 8.17B | 7.3B | 112% |
COST | KMB | ||
|---|---|---|---|
OUTLOOK RATING 1..100 | 18 | 60 | |
VALUATION overvalued / fair valued / undervalued 1..100 | 94 Overvalued | 15 Undervalued | |
PROFIT vs RISK RATING 1..100 | 11 | 100 | |
SMR RATING 1..100 | 32 | 11 | |
PRICE GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 54 | 62 | |
P/E GROWTH RATING 1..100 | 73 | 54 | |
SEASONALITY SCORE 1..100 | 50 | 50 |
Tickeron ratings are formulated such that a rating of 1 designates the most successful stocks in a given industry, while a rating of 100 points to the least successful stocks for that industry.
KMB's Valuation (15) in the Household Or Personal Care industry is significantly better than the same rating for COST (94) in the Specialty Stores industry. This means that KMB’s stock grew significantly faster than COST’s over the last 12 months.
COST's Profit vs Risk Rating (11) in the Specialty Stores industry is significantly better than the same rating for KMB (100) in the Household Or Personal Care industry. This means that COST’s stock grew significantly faster than KMB’s over the last 12 months.
KMB's SMR Rating (11) in the Household Or Personal Care industry is in the same range as COST (32) in the Specialty Stores industry. This means that KMB’s stock grew similarly to COST’s over the last 12 months.
COST's Price Growth Rating (54) in the Specialty Stores industry is in the same range as KMB (62) in the Household Or Personal Care industry. This means that COST’s stock grew similarly to KMB’s over the last 12 months.
KMB's P/E Growth Rating (54) in the Household Or Personal Care industry is in the same range as COST (73) in the Specialty Stores industry. This means that KMB’s stock grew similarly to COST’s over the last 12 months.
| COST | KMB | |
|---|---|---|
| RSI ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 40% | 2 days ago 43% |
| Stochastic ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 68% | 2 days ago 40% |
| Momentum ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 47% | 2 days ago 47% |
| MACD ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 56% | 2 days ago 54% |
| TrendWeek ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 65% | 2 days ago 43% |
| TrendMonth ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 62% | 2 days ago 46% |
| Advances ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 63% | 2 days ago 42% |
| Declines ODDS (%) | 5 days ago 38% | 6 days ago 48% |
| BollingerBands ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 43% | 2 days ago 48% |
| Aroon ODDS (%) | 2 days ago 51% | 2 days ago 45% |
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| 1 Day | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ETFs / NAME | Price $ | Chg $ | Chg % |
| CGRO | 25.25 | 0.96 | +3.93% |
| CoreValues Alpha Greater China Gr ETF | |||
| ASEA | 20.03 | 0.20 | +1.01% |
| Global X FTSE Southeast Asia ETF | |||
| DFP | 21.08 | 0.18 | +0.86% |
| FLAHERTY & CRUMRINE DYNAMIC PREFERRED AND Income FUND | |||
| RTRE | 25.27 | 0.11 | +0.43% |
| Rareview Total Return Bond ETF | |||
| NEAR | 50.95 | 0.10 | +0.20% |
| iShares Short Duration Bond Active ETF | |||
KMB and
Correlation & Price change
A.I.dvisor indicates that over the last year, KMB has been loosely correlated with CL. These tickers have moved in lockstep 53% of the time. This A.I.-generated data suggests there is some statistical probability that if KMB jumps, then CL could also see price increases.