On November 10, Costco Wholesale (COST) declared a special cash dividend of $30 per share. That is double the $15 special Costco paid in January 2024, and more than five times the regular annual dividend of $5.88.
The special dividend is payable on December 4 to shareholders of record on November 24, which is also the ex-dividend date. The total payout comes to about $13.3 billion, according to Costco's press release.
Costco also reauthorized its stock repurchase program at up to $4 billion, running through November 2030. The new program replaces the $4 billion program adopted in 2023, under which Costco had bought back $3.1 billion of stock.
I own 35 shares of COST at an average cost basis of $578.03/share, so I'll collect $1,050 from this special dividend. That's a one-time yield of 5.19% on my cost, or 2.75% at the current price of $1,092.21/share.
Because the payment is non-recurring, COST's contribution to DivGro's projected annual dividend income stays at $205.80. The regular quarterly dividend remains $1.47 per share.
Special dividends are part of how Costco returns excess cash to shareholders. This is the sixth special since 2012, arriving roughly every two to four years:
| Declared | Nov 2012 | Jan 2015 | Apr 2017 | Nov 2020 | Dec 2023 | Nov 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Special Dividend | $7.00 | $5.00 | $7.00 | $10.00 | $15.00 | $30.00 |
Created by the author
The chart shows how much these payments add on top of the regular dividend. Even after 22 years of raises, the regular dividend comes to $5.71 per share for 2026, while this year's special alone is $30.
I've collected two of these before: $100 in December 2020 and $375 in January 2024. With this payment, my special dividends from Costco will total $1,525.
Created by the author
On my 9-factor quality model, COST scores 9.14, in the Exceptional band. Simply Safe Dividends rates COST's dividend Very Safe at 99, the top tier of their five-band scale, and Seeking Alpha grades it A+. With a payout ratio of 27% and an AA credit rating from S&P, Costco can afford to reward shareholders with a large special payment while continuing to raise its regular dividend, which it has done for 22 consecutive years.
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