Walmart Q1 FY26 Earnings: The Era of Low Prices Won’t Last — the Price Hike Nightmare Begins in May!

TradingKey - Walmart (WMT.US), the U.S. retail giant, continued to deliver solid revenue growth in the first quarter of fiscal 2026 and achieved a milestone with its e-commerce business turning profitable for the first time. However, its strategy of winning market share through low pricing is becoming increasingly difficult under the looming threat of Trump’s tariffs, and Walmart now faces heightened uncertainty in its operating environment.

According to the Q1 FY26 earnings report released before the U.S. market open on May 15, Walmart reported year-over-year revenue growth of 2.5% to $165.61 billion, slightly below the expected $165.84 billion. Earnings per share came in at 61 cents, beating analysts’ expectations of 58 cents.

Walmart noted that increased transaction volume and sales drove steady growth during the quarter, with e-commerce expansion across all departments and stable inventory levels showcasing the strength and resilience of its business model.

Some analysts argue that Walmart’s better-than-expected Q1 results indicate that its strategy of cutting prices to gain market share is paying off. In fact, Walmart had previously stated in April that it saw the Trump tariffs as an opportunity to gain market share — by maintaining low prices.

However, amid the release of these earnings, Walmart executives repeatedly emphasized concerns over “uncertainty” and rising prices.

Walmart CFO John David Rainey said that the impact of tariff-driven price increases will become evident in May, and will likely become more pronounced thereafter.

Rainey explained that so far, there hasn’t been a significant change in industry-wide pricing, but tariff-related price hikes are already beginning to show up in stores, and the magnitude of these increases is expected to grow over time.

Walmart did not provide guidance for the next quarter's revenue, noting that ongoing trade negotiations in the U.S. are changing week by week — sometimes even day by day — making the near-term outlook extremely difficult to predict.