Costco declares $30 special dividend, a $13.3 billion payout
Costco's board declared a one-time dividend of $30 a share on Tuesday, about $13.3 billion in total and twice the size of its last special payout in 2023, payable Dec. 4 to shareholders of record on Nov. 24; the stock rose about 1.5% in after-hours trading.
AI-assisted · US Brief desk · Sources listed below
What happened
Costco's board declared a special cash dividend of $30 a share on Tuesday, the company said in a release issued after the stock market closed. The payment is due Dec. 4 to everyone who holds the stock at the close of business on Nov. 24, and Costco put the total at about $13.3 billion. The board also renewed its stock buyback authority at up to $4 billion through November 2030, replacing a 2023 plan under which Costco had bought back $3.1 billion of shares.
Market reaction: Costco shares rose about 1.5% in after-hours trading, Investing.com reported. StockTitan put the after-hours price at $1,083 shortly after the release, up from Tuesday's official close of $1,066.14. At that close, the $30 dividend is worth about 2.8% of the share price.
Costco's six special dividends, per share (declared, per StockTitan's review of Costco's releases): $7 in 2012; $5 in 2015; $7 in 2017; $10 in 2020; $15 in 2023; $30 in 2026. StockTitan noted Costco said it paid for the 2015 special with cash and new borrowing and the 2017 one mainly with borrowing, while the 2020 one came from existing cash.
Why it matters
It is the warehouse club's biggest one-time payout to shareholders. At $30 a share it is twice the $15 special dividend Costco declared in December 2023, and the $13.3 billion total is about twice that payout's $6.7 billion, according to StockTitan's tally of the company's releases. A holder of 10 shares on Nov. 24 would get $300 before taxes. The special payment comes on top of Costco's regular dividend of $1.47 a share each quarter, which is still due Nov. 13.
More context
The money behind it: Costco held $20.2 billion in cash at the end of its fiscal year on Aug. 30, StockTitan reported from the company's annual report, so the payout equals about two thirds of that. Tuesday's release does not say whether Costco will use cash, borrowing or both.
Also disclosed: Board member Helena Foulkes resigned from the board and its committees effective Nov. 7, StreetInsider reported. She had served since August 2023. No reason was given in the report.
What's still unknown: How Costco will fund the $13.3 billion, which should show up in its next quarterly report, and the official ex-dividend date. Under Nasdaq's rule for a payout this size, that date would normally fall on the Nov. 24 record date, StockTitan noted, so buyers on or after that day would not get the $30.
6 listed sources
- Costco Wholesale Corp. (GlobeNewswire), Costco Wholesale Corporation Declares $30 Special Cash Dividend and Reauthorizes Stock Repurchase Program, Nov. 10, 2026
- Costco investor relations, same release
- Investing.com (Louis Juricic), After-Hours Movers: CRWV, NBIS, RGTI, STUB, FOSL, COST, Nov. 10, 2026
- StockTitan, Costco (COST) Special Dividend of $30 Doubles Its Last One, for Owners of Record on November 24, Nov. 10, 2026
- Seeking Alpha (Clark Schultz), Costco gains after announcing its first special dividend in almost three years, Nov. 10, 2026
- StreetInsider, Costco declares $30 special dividend, board member resigns, Nov. 10, 2026
References listed by US Brief; a source count is not a verification score.
Editorial sourcing notes
The dividend amount, dates, total and buyback details are from Costco's Nov. 10 release. The after-hours move (about 1.5%) is from Investing.com; StockTitan put the after-hours price at $1,083 at 4:25 p.m. ET against a $1,066.14 close. Comparisons with earlier special dividends, the regular dividend and Costco's cash are StockTitan's tallies of Costco's past releases and its fiscal 2026 annual report. The ex-dividend date had not been posted by Nasdaq as of Tuesday evening. The hero photo shows a Costco food court (file photo, 2025), not from this announcement.
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