While Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) has surpassed Walmart (NASDAQ: WMT) as the largest company by sales, Walmart is making significant strides in the e-commerce sector. In its most recent fiscal 2027 second quarter update, Walmart's e-commerce sales surged by 23% year over year, outpacing Amazon's 2% growth in online sales for the third quarter. Amazon's highest growth is currently coming from its Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud segment, with third-party sales growing 9%.
Walmart's advantage lies in its extensive network of 5,700 U.S. stores, which serve as distribution hubs, enabling easy pickup and fast delivery options. This strategic edge has helped Walmart increase its e-commerce market share from 6.7% to 9.2%, according to Statista, indicating it is gaining market share from smaller competitors. However, Amazon still dominates the U.S. e-commerce market with over 40% share.
Investors should keep an eye on Walmart's e-commerce growth as it prepares to report third-quarter earnings in November, especially with the holiday season approaching. The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team has not included Walmart in its list of top 10 stocks to buy now, highlighting other potential high-growth opportunities.
The Motley Fool has positions in both Amazon and Walmart, and Jennifer Saibil, an author mentioned in the article, holds positions in Walmart. The article contains syndicated content, and the Motley Fool has not reviewed, approved, or endorsed the content.