COST’s worst drop since 1999 was 53%
Costco (COST) fell 53% from May 2000 to Dec 2002. It took 6.2 years from that peak to close at a new high, in Jul 2006. Over the same years the S&P 500 fell as much as 55%.
That drop is milder than most. It ranks 850th of the 986 stocks PortfolioAutopsy tracks, counted from the deepest.
Drawdown from the last high, 1999 to now
How COST held up in each crash
| Crash | Years | COST | S&P 500 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dot-com bust | 2000–02 | −53.4% | −47.5% |
| Financial crisis | 2007–09 | −48.1% | −55.2% |
| COVID crash | 2020 | −13.6% | −33.7% |
| 2022 rate shock | 2022 | −31.4% | −24.5% |
Each number is the deepest fall from a high inside that window, using daily prices with dividends reinvested.
See how COST behaves inside your whole mix, with the worst 12 months, loss odds and crash replays. Free, no signup, and the math runs in your browser.
Open COST in PortfolioAutopsyCheck my whole portfolioQuestions
What was COST’s maximum drawdown?
COST’s deepest fall since 1999 was 53.4%, from its high on May 1, 2000 to its low on December 24, 2002. The figure uses daily prices with dividends reinvested.
How long did COST take to recover?
6.2 years. COST first closed above its May 2000 high again on July 3, 2006.
Was COST riskier than the S&P 500?
Over the same years, COST’s worst drop was 53.4% against 55.2% for the S&P 500 (SPY), and its worst 12 months were −39.1% against −47.4%.
Compare with
Daily adjusted closes from Yahoo Finance, January 5, 1999 through October 13, 2026, dividends reinvested. Historical facts, not a forecast and not investment advice.