Walmart reported 24% e-commerce growth in the latest quarter during a presentation at the Goldman Sachs Global Consumer and Retail Conference, marking the 10th consecutive quarter the retailer has posted online sales growth above 20%. Marketplace sales rose 52% year-over-year, driven largely by general merchandise and what the company described as "torso and tail" assortments—deeper, less-common inventory lines.
The Marketplace segment has been profitable for six consecutive quarters, with the most recent quarter recording its highest quarterly profit ever even excluding advertising revenue. Walmart Fulfillment Services handles approximately 50% of Marketplace volume and is priced roughly 15% below competitive market rates, according to the company.
Walmart Connect advertising revenue grew 43% year-over-year, carrying profit margins of about 70%. The company is testing digital signage in more than 200 stores by year-end. Vizio and onn unit sales rose more than 150% year-over-year, contributing to the broader digital and retail mix shift.
On pricing, front-half inflation averaged 1.4% overall, with food inflation at about 1% and general merchandise at about 2%. Q3 inflation fell below 1% as price investments took effect. At back-to-school pricing, Walmart showcased a Pen+Gear 24-pack crayon set at $0.24 and wide rule paper at $0.82, capturing over 50% of U.S. back-to-school unit volume.
About 80% of e-commerce deliveries flow through stores, with roughly 70% of orders delivered same-day or faster. Approximately 40% of store-originated deliveries arrive in hours or minutes, and express delivery within 30 minutes doubled year-over-year. Pharmacy delivery now reaches 96% of the U.S. population in three hours or less and 60% in 30 minutes or less, with same-day pharmacy deliveries more than doubling year-over-year and repeat rates improving 10 times.
In AI-driven commerce, weekly engagement with Sparky grew more than 60% quarter-over-quarter. Customers using Sparky show a 40% higher average order value, and visual shopping lifts conversion by 57% versus text-based shopping. The company named OpenAI and Google as explicit agentic commerce partners.
Health and wellness, representing about 10% of the U.S. business, posted double-digit year-over-year profit improvement. Health and wellness customers spend approximately three times more than the average Walmart customer; pharmacy delivery customers spend nearly six times more. Maximum Fair Price regulation currently applies to about 10 high-volume drugs, with an additional 15 announced. About 35% to 40% of Nespresso buyers and roughly 50% of Medicube buyers were new to those categories at Walmart.
