Walmart (WMT) Q3 2026 earnings

Walmart raised its sales and earnings outlook Thursday as the retailer posted revenue gains in its fiscal third quarter, driven by double-digit e-commerce growth and new customers across incomes.

The retailer said it expects full-year net sales to climb between 4.8% and 5.1%, up from its previous expectations of 3.75% to 4.75%. It said it expects its adjusted earnings per share to range from $2.58 to $2.63, a slight raise from its prior range of $2.52 to $2.62.

It marked the second quarter in a row Walmart hiked its full-year forecast. 

Walmart’s earnings report is the first since the Arkansas-based company announced a leadership change. The big-box retailer said last week that John Furner, the CEO of its U.S. business, will succeed longtime CEO Doug McMillon on Feb. 1.

In an interview with CNBC, Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey said consumer habits didn’t change during the quarter, as shoppers spent selectively and looked for deals. He said Walmart has gained those “value-seeking” customers across incomes, both because of the economic backdrop and its own strategic moves.

“Consumers are looking to do business with those companies that are providing value, that are delivering the convenience that they’ve come to know and expect, and that are executing consistently well,” he said.

He said Walmart saw an impact from the pause in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits, formerly known as food stamps, during the prolonged government shutdown. But he said “that’s starting to rebound now that people are receiving those funds again.”

Here is what the big-box retailer reported for the fiscal third quarter compared with Wall Street’s estimates, according to a survey of analysts by LSEG:

• Earnings per share: 62 cents adjusted vs. 60 cents expected
• Revenue: $179.50 billion vs. $177.43 billion expected

Walmart also said Thursday that it will transfer the listing of its common stock to the Nasdaq and will begin trading there on Dec. 9. It is currently traded on the New York Stock Exchange. It will have the same stock ticker symbol, “WMT.”

The company’s stock was about flat in premarket trading Thursday. As of Wednesday’s close, shares of Walmart are up about 11% so far this year. That trails the S&P 500’s nearly 13% gains during the same period. 

As a retail giant that draws shoppers across incomes, Walmart is closely watched as an indication of the health of the U.S. consumer and how President Donald Trump‘s tariffs are affecting the prices shoppers pay. It can speak to consumer behavior across categories, since it sells discretionary items like makeup and clothes along with necessities like milk and toilet paper.

Walmart has gained more high-income customers as even affluent households sought relief from pricier grocery bills due to high inflation in recent years. That cohort also has…