Catenaa, Thursday, February 19, 2026- Walmart has lost its crown as the world’s largest company by sales to Amazon despite reporting record annual revenues.
According to The Financial Times, the US retailer reported sales of $190.7 billion in its fourth quarter, up 5.6% year on year, bringing the total for the 12 months to January to $713.2 billion in a surge underpinned by its growing online business.
Earlier this month, Amazon posted annual revenues of $716.9 billion for 2025. Walmart stock has more than doubled over the past two years, driving its market capitalisation above $1 trillion, with shares up 0.5% around midday on Thursday.
The company recently shifted its listing to the tech-focused Nasdaq exchange as it sought to emphasize technology investments, including automation and AI. Net sales are forecast to grow between 3.5 and 4.5%, slower than last year’s pace of 4.7%.
Walmart executives are “overall constructive on the economy”, said Finance Chief John David Rainey. “But there are certainly indicators out there, whether it be a hiring recession, or maybe subdued consumer sentiment, student loan delinquencies … that would make you want to be more balanced,” he said.
Households earning less than $50,000 a year have felt stress, with some “people living pay cheque to pay cheque”, said John Furner, Chief Executive.
Walmart continued to win market share among upper-income households earning more than $100,000, he added.
Rainey said Walmart had typically raised its initial financial guidance over the past three years before surpassing it. Walmart forecasts a 6 to 8% rise in adjusted operating profit this year.
The earnings were the first under Furner, who took over this month from longtime boss Doug McMillon. Furner previously ran Walmart’s sprawling US business, whose same-store sales rose by 4.6% in the quarter, beating analyst estimates of a 4.2% increase, according to Visible Alpha.
