TLDR
- Walmart posted 4.6% U.S. same-store sales growth in Q4 2026, its 28th straight quarter of positive SSS
- E-commerce revenue jumped 24% year-over-year in Q4; advertising revenue surged 37%
- The stock trades at roughly 46–47x trailing earnings — nearly double the S&P 500’s multiple
- Walmart has raised its dividend for 53 consecutive years, cementing its Dividend King status
- Despite strong fundamentals, the stock has declined in recent weeks after its February earnings report
Walmart is as steady as they come. The retail giant has posted positive U.S. same-store sales for at least 28 straight quarters, navigating everything from COVID-19 to supply chain chaos to inflation without missing a beat.
In Q4 2026 (ended Jan. 31), Walmart reported U.S. same-store sales growth of 4.6%. The company also beat analyst expectations on both the top and bottom lines.
Net income is up 97% over the past three years. Full-year net sales hit $706 billion in fiscal 2026.
The company’s scale gives it unmatched bargaining power with suppliers — an advantage smaller competitors simply can’t match.
Walmart+ now has over 28 million paid members, generating a recurring revenue stream that keeps getting stickier.
Digital Growth Is Real
E-commerce revenue grew 24% year-over-year in Q4 — more than four times the company’s overall growth rate. CFO John David Rainey noted on the earnings call that Walmart can reach 95% of America within three hours, leaning on its physical store network as a fulfillment advantage.
Advertising revenue jumped 37% in the same period. The company is also rolling out AI-powered tools, including the Sparky shopping assistant. These higher-margin revenue lines are improving the overall business mix.
Walmart raised its dividend again, marking 53 consecutive years of increases. The current yield sits at 0.74%.
The Valuation Problem
Here’s where things get complicated. Walmart’s stock currently trades at around 46–47 times trailing earnings. That’s nearly double the S&P 500’s price-to-earnings multiple.
For a company growing revenue in the low-to-mid single digits, that’s a hard number to justify. The stock is up 170% over the past three years — a stretch that looks disconnected from the underlying growth rate.
Walmart has been swept up in a broader trend of investors piling into safe-haven stocks, alongside gold and silver. The demand is understandable, but it has pushed the valuation into growth-stock territory without the growth to match.
Despite the strong Q4 results reported in February, the stock has actually been falling in recent weeks. It currently sits at $127.18, down from a 52-week high of $134.69.
The stock’s market cap is just over $1 trillion.
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