Walmart Inc. announced that it grew consolidated revenue 4.8% in its fiscal Q2, and online sales grew at more than five times that rate.
In Q2 of its fiscal 2025, which ended July 31, 2024, Walmart consolidated revenue grew to $169.34 billion. That’s up 4.8% from $161.63 billion in the prior year’s Q2. At the same time, Walmart’s consolidated operating income grew $0.6 billion year over year, which is an 8.5% increase — nearly double the rate of its revenue growth.
On an earnings call with investors, chief financial officer John David Rainey said advertising and membership accounted for more than 50% of Walmart’s year-over-year operating income growth in the quarter.
“So far, we aren’t experiencing a weaker consumer overall,” CEO Doug McMillon said on the call.
McMillon added that Walmart’s customers and members consistently seek value, a broad assortment of items and services, and convenience when buying.
“As it relates to value, we’re lowering prices,” he said, adding that in the U.S., Walmart has more than 7,200 rollbacks across categories.
Walmart is No. 2 in the Top 1000, Digital Commerce 360’s ranking of North America’s online retailers by web sales. It is also No. 9 in the Global Online Marketplaces Database, Digital Commerce 360’s ranking of top such marketplaces by third-party gross merchandise value (GMV).
Walmart online sales far outpace revenue growth in Q2
In its fiscal Q2 ’25, Walmart online sales grew 21% globally. Walmart said its online marketplace as well as store-fulfilled pickup and delivery guided that growth. Additionally, global ecommerce penetration “is higher across all segments,” the retailer said in its earnings release.
“Pickup is growing faster than our in-store or club sales, and delivery is growing even faster than pickup,” McMillon said. “Delivery accuracy and speed continue to improve.”
Walmart Marketplace’s item and seller count continues to grow, McMillon told investors. Additionally, Walmart Marketplace sales grew 32% year over year in Q2. In Mexico, Walmart grew marketplace sellers and items about 60% in Q2.
Walmart’s online sales have grown more than 20% year over year in five of the past six quarters. Additionally, Walmart ecommerce sales have grown more than 10% year over year in nine of the past 10 quarters.
Rainey said Walmart is “encouraged by the progress in core ecommerce margins, due largely to another quarter of nearly 40% reduction in U.S. net delivery cost per order.”
Walmart and Sam’s Club online grocery sales in Q2
In the United States, specifically, Walmart ecommerce sales grew 22% in Q2. Online sales at Sam’s Club in the U.S. grew at the same rate. At Sam’s Club, Scan & Go penetration surpassed 30%. Scan & Go is a feature in the Sam’s Club mobile app that enables customers to scan items in stores to check out through their phones.
Meanwhile, international Walmart ecommerce sales grew 18% in the quarter. In China, Walmart increased the number of ecommerce orders it delivered within one hour by 28%, to 59 million orders, Rainey said. And in Canada, delivery pass members drove more than 40% of grocery delivery sales with order frequency significantly higher than that of non-members.
Also relating to grocery: In India, Flipkart grocery grew over 50% while providing next-day delivery in more than 200 cities, Rainey said.
Walmart powers ecommerce sales and fulfillment with generative AI
McMillon said the retailer is pleased with its efforts to improve automation in its supply chain, using generative AI to improve both customer and employee experiences.
“One example is that we’ve used generative AI to improve our product catalog,” McMillon said. “The quality of the data in our catalog affects nearly everything we do from helping customers find and buy what they’re looking for, to how we store inventory in the network, to delivering orders.”
Without using generative AI, he said, Walmart would have needed nearly 100 times its current employee headcount to complete that work in the same amount of time.
In the U.S., more than 45% of Walmart ecommerce fulfillment center volume is now automated, Rainey told investors. Walmart has about 1,800 stores receiving freight from 15 of its regional distribution centers, which are in varying stages of automation implementation, he said. As a result, Walmart’s supply chain teams are processing more units through its distribution and fulfillment centers.
McMillon added that Walmart Marketplace is an area of opportunity to better use generative AI. Walmart Marketplace is testing an experience among select U.S.-based sellers “that allows them to ask us anything,” he said.
“We want our sellers focused on selling, so the more we can make it a seamless experience, the better,” McMillon said. “The new assistant will quickly summarize and provide the seller with succinct answers without them having to sort through long articles or other materials.”
Revenue from advertising business Walmart Connect
Globally, Walmart grew revenue for its advertising business, called Walmart Connect, by 26% in its fiscal Q2. And in the U.S., Walmart Connect revenue grew 30%. Meanwhile, its international advertising revenue grew 23%.
McMillon said advertising sales driven by marketplace sellers grew nearly 50%.
Walmart Plus and Sam’s Club memberships
Walmart Plus memberships grew double digits, McMillon said, not quantifying the growth. Globally, membership income grew 23%.
He added that Sam’s Club in the U.S. reached a record in its number of members. Although he did not specify how many members, Walmart said membership income at Sam’s Club U.S. grew 14.4%.
Rainey said Sam’s Club is growing its membership across all income levels and among younger consumers. Gen Z and Millennial consumers accounted for about half of new members in Q2, which he called “a positive signal about the future growth of the business.”
Check back for more earnings reports. See Walmart’s previous quarterly earnings story here.
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