• by Sarah Mahoney , February 19, 2026

 
Walmart’s fourth-quarter revenues reached $190.7 billion, up 5.6%, as financially pressured consumers continued shifting grocery spending toward the retailer. Operating income climbed 10.8% to $8.7 billion while the company’s advertising business maintained strong momentum, rising 37% globally and 41% in the U.S. Walmart Connect division.

Once again, Walmart says most of the market share gains came from households with incomes of more than $100,000. “For households earning below $50,000, we continue to see that wallets are stretched,” said John Furner, the retailer’s new president and CEO, in the company’s earnings call. “In some cases, people are managing spending paycheck to paycheck. That said, even these households are emphasizing convenience nearly as much as price.”

The news comes as Dunnhumby, a market research company, released new data demonstrating that bad news for American shoppers continues to be excellent news for Walmart. The report says Walmart’s grocery penetration has reached a record 72%, as financial insecurity among Americans ages 18–54 climbed to 70%. The Bentonville, Arkansas-based giant gained 6 percentage points year over year, giving Walmart 2.5 times the reach of its next-largest competitor, Dollar General, at 28.6%.

Walmart+ membership continues to grow, with fee revenue rising 15%. Deutsche Bank’s research finds that the growth of that service has been steady over the past three quarters, with 31% of respondents saying they belong to Walmart+. Awareness of the program, which rivals Amazon Prime, continues to grow, with only 7% of respondents unaware of the program.

Groceries aren’t the only news, though, with the company reporting low single-digit gains in general merchandise, with fashion an especially bright spot.

As Furner takes over as CEO, Walmart seems to be “closing its chapter of building out the foundation for its digital capabilities, including AI, and is shifting gears into acceleration mode,” writes Krisztina Katai, an analyst who follows Walmart for Deutsche Bank. Even with financial woes in its consumer base, including pressure on middle-income people, high interest rates and rising layoffs, she is optimistic about the coming months: “We believe Walmart is well positioned in 2026.” She anticipates first-half benefits that include a strong tax return season, which she says will boost the retailer’s business, as well as Walmart's ability to mitigate tariff and inflationary pressures.

Walmart will likely continue to gain market share as consumers fret about inflation and the impact those perceptions have on family food budgets. Dunnhumby, which fielded its research in December, reports that U.S. consumers perceive food inflation at 19.6%, eight times the actual rate of 2.4%. For those with household income below $50,000, the perceived inflation rate is 23.6%, about 10 times the actual rate.

The quarterly report also notes a historic shift toward budget consciousness and says that, for the first time, the number of people shopping for food at mass-channel retailers equals that at traditional supermarkets, at 79%. That means millions of Americans have changed where they shop, with dollar stores surging to 42% penetration, overtaking club stores for the first time since August 2023.

“We are seeing that U.S. households are realigning where they shop based on affordability,” said Matt O’Grady, president of the Americas for dunnhumby, in the report. “What makes this different from the 2023 inflation spike is that consumer concern persists even as actual inflation moderates. The consumer is just not feeling it. Where they shop, how they use coupons, even how they adopt AI—everything aligns to saving money. When financial insecurity becomes this entrenched, grocery affordability becomes paramount, and shopping behavior doesn’t just snap back.”