Mirror Review
November 24, 2025
When people think of Walmart, they usually think of big stores and low prices. But the latest Walmart earnings for Q3 FY26 reveal a shift that is far bigger than retail.
Walmart is quickly becoming a media business since it is now earning more from data, digital screens, and retail media than ever before.
The company’s advertising revenue jumped 53% this quarter, making it one of the most profitable parts of Walmart’s business.
CEO Doug McMillon said the company delivered a strong quarter and is well-positioned for the transition ahead.
His confidence reflects a new reality: the strongest engine behind Walmart’s growth no longer sits on store shelves. It lives in its digital ecosystem.
This shift is happening across the retail sector, as seen in Target’s recent earnings, where shoppers showed a strong need-based shopping pattern.
Key Figures From the Q3 FY26 Walmart Earnings Report
To understand the shift happening inside Walmart, here are the most important numbers from its official Q3 release (based on the earnings document you provided):
- Total Revenue and Sales
- Revenue rose 5.8% to 179.5 billion dollars.
- Walmart U.S. comp sales grew 4.5%.
- Sam’s Club comp sales grew 3.8%.
- eCommerce Performance
- Global eCommerce sales rose 27%.
- Walmart U.S. eCommerce grew 28%.
- Store-fulfilled delivery almost 70% growth.
- Marketplace continued to expand.
- Advertising and Media
- Global advertising business jumped 53%.
- Walmart Connect U.S. grew 33%.
- VIZIO’s media platform contributed to overall ad growth.
- Profitability
- Adjusted operating income grew 8% in constant currency.
- The company raised its full-year outlook for both net sales and operating income.
- Membership
- Membership and other income rose 9%.
- Membership income alone increased 16.7%, showing stickier customer loyalty.
These Walmart earnings show that the fastest-growing parts of Walmart’s business are digital, high-margin, and anchored in advertising and eCommerce.
Why Advertising Is Now Walmart’s Most Profitable Business Line
Walmart’s 53% advertising revenue is a transformation in the retail economy. Below are the key reasons this is happening and why it matters for the future of the company and the industry.
1. Walmart Has Become One of the Strongest Retail Media Networks in the U.S.
Advertising is becoming Walmart’s most profitable line because the company now controls something incredibly valuable: closed-loop shopper data.
Every click, search, and purchase across stores, apps, and delivery services feeds into Walmart’s data engine.
Brands want to reach real shoppers at the moment they make decisions. Walmart’s media network allows advertisers to:
- target shoppers based on real purchase behavior
- place ads in high-intent digital areas
- measure exactly which ads lead to purchases
This performance-driven model is more efficient for brands than buying general digital ads on social media, which rely on broader audience signals.
The result is a powerful revenue stream that does not require building more stores or managing more inventory.
2. VIZIO Signals Walmart’s Push Into Home Screens
The acquisition of VIZIO added millions of smart TVs to Walmart’s advertising ecosystem. This allows the company to connect ads shown on TV with purchases made on Walmart.com or in-store.
This trend is known as shoppable media. It blends entertainment and commerce in one place.
The impact is already visible in the 53% jump in global advertising this quarter. It also gives Walmart a long-term advantage because it can:
- sell TV ad inventory
- connect TV viewing to shopping behavior
- deliver ads based on what users watch
Other retailers do not have this level of in-home presence.
3. Advertising Has Higher Margins Than Retail Sales
Retail margins are historically thin as seen in the Q3 Walmart earnings report. Stores require:
- employees
- logistics
- inventory
- real estate
- supply chain systems
Advertising requires none of that. Once the platform is built, ad revenue scales with minimal cost.
Industry experts estimate that retail media margins are similar to Google-level or Amazon-level margins. This makes advertising more profitable, dollar for dollar, than selling goods.
This is why Walmart’s fastest-growing profit engine is no longer its stores but its screens.
4. eCommerce Growth Feeds Advertising Growth
The more people shop online, the more ad inventory Walmart has. In Q3:
- Online sales rose 27% globally
- Walmart U.S. online orders grew 28%
- Delivery from stores grew nearly 70%
Every digital touchpoint becomes a place for brands to advertise. And as marketplace sellers increase, they spend more on ads to compete for visibility.
This creates a positive cycle: More sellers = more ads = more revenue = more profits = more investment in digital.
5. Advertising Helps Walmart Compete With Amazon in a New Way
For years, Amazon dominated retail media. But Walmart’s recent numbers show it is catching up faster than expected.
Walmart has something Amazon does not: thousands of physical stores that serve as fulfillment hubs.
When shoppers buy groceries weekly, the data becomes richer and more accurate than general online browsing data.
This gives Walmart the ability to dominate high-frequency advertising categories like:
- grocery
- household essentials
- personal care
These categories attract billions in ad spending because they have short purchase cycles and massive scale.
What This Shift Means for the Future of Walmart
The latest Walmart earnings show a company undergoing a strategic transformation. Here is what the shift toward advertising signals for the years ahead.
- Walmart will rely less on physical expansion and more on digital monetization.
The company already has more than enough stores. Future growth will come from digital services.
- Marketplace sellers will play a larger role.
More third-party sellers means more ad dollars.
- AI-driven personalization will become central.
The more data they collect, the better Walmart AI can recommend products and place ads.
- Walmart could be valued increasingly like a tech company.
Investors may begin treating Walmart’s media operations separately from retail.
Walmart’s incoming CEO John Furner, also commented on this shift during internal discussions, saying that Walmart is entering a phase where “digital capabilities and retail media will shape our long-term value much more than physical expansion.”
His early remarks indicate that advertising and digital growth will remain central once he takes the top role.
Conclusion
The FY2026 Q3 Walmart earnings show a clear shift in the company’s identity. Walmart is still a retail giant, but it is now also a media powerhouse.
The 53% rise in advertising is the strongest proof that Walmart’s most profitable future no longer depends on shelf space but on digital space.
As Walmart continues to merge its stores, data, and screens, it is building a new kind of retail model where advertising drives profits and digital convenience drives growth.
The world’s largest retailer is quietly becoming one of the most influential players in the advertising industry, and this quarter makes that shift impossible to ignore.
