Walmart on Tuesday created history by becoming the first retail company in the world to achieve a market capitalisation of $1 trillion. The landmark valuation follows a sustained rally in the company’s shares over the past year, underscoring investor confidence in Walmart’s evolving business model.
According to a news agency, Walmart’s stock has risen nearly 26 per cent over the last 12 months. Looking at the long-term performance, the gains are even more striking. Over the past decade, Walmart shares have surged about 468 per cent, far outpacing the S&P 500’s rise of around 264 per cent.
This milestone places Walmart among a very small and elite group of global corporations and signals a major shift in how traditional retail businesses are valued in the digital age.
Walmart’s entry into the $1 trillion club is particularly noteworthy because such valuations have historically been associated with technology-focused companies. Until now, trillion-dollar market capitalisations were largely reserved for firms driven by software, semiconductors, cloud computing, and artificial intelligence.
With its latest stock rally, Walmart joins a select group of companies globally valued at $1 trillion or more, highlighting how deeply technology, data, and digital platforms are now embedded in modern retail operations.
Other companies with market valuations exceeding $1 trillion include Nvidia, Alphabet, Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Tesla, and Broadcom, among others.
According to BankRate, chip giant Nvidia currently leads the pack with a market capitalisation of $4.3 trillion, followed by Microsoft at $3.8 trillion, Apple at $3.5 trillion, Alphabet at $3.0 trillion, and Amazon at $2.5 trillion.
Walmart’s inclusion in this group marks a rare achievement for a retailer whose roots lie in physical stores rather than digital-first technology.
According to Reuters, Walmart’s rise has been driven by a carefully balanced strategy. The retailer has successfully attracted higher-income consumers seeking value and convenience, while continuing to serve its long-standing base of lower-income shoppers. This dual appeal has helped Walmart expand its customer footprint even amid inflationary pressures.
Over the past five years, Walmart has sharply expanded its e-commerce presence. The company now offers over half a billion items online, significantly broadening its digital catalogue.
Key initiatives include:
The rollout of one-hour delivery services
The launch of Walmart+, aimed at competing directly with Amazon Prime
The creation of a $4-billion advertising business, which has become a high-margin revenue stream and boosted overall profitability
Walmart has also made substantial investments in artificial intelligence. Reuters reported that the company spent billions on AI-powered supply chains to enhance inventory planning, ensure fresher produce, and accelerate delivery times.
These efforts have delivered measurable results. The improvements helped Walmart beat US same-store sales estimates for 15 straight quarters, according to the report, strengthening investor confidence in its long-term growth strategy.
Despite the historic milestone, Walmart faces growing challenges, particularly in its rivalry with Amazon. The two retail giants are locked in a competitive race to develop AI-powered shopping tools.
Walmart has partnered with OpenAI and Google to integrate its shopping services into AI chatbots. This move is part of a broader effort to narrow the gap with Amazon’s AI assistant, Rufus, which is already embedded across Amazon’s ecosystem.
Walmart opened its first store in Arkansas in 1962 and has since grown into one of the world’s largest retailers. Today, the company operates around 4,600 stores across the US.
Walmart went public in 1970, joined the Dow Jones index in 1997, and has long been a core constituent of the S&P 500. Its $1 trillion valuation marks another defining chapter in a six-decade-long journey.
Walmart’s rise to a $1 trillion market valuation represents more than just a stock market milestone. It reflects the successful transformation of a traditional retailer into a technology-driven, data-powered global enterprise. By expanding its digital offerings, investing heavily in AI, and diversifying revenue streams through advertising and subscriptions, Walmart has reshaped investor perceptions of what a retail company can achieve.
While competition from Amazon and rapid technological change pose ongoing challenges, Walmart’s scale, supply chain strength, and growing digital ecosystem position it strongly for the future. As retail and technology continue to converge, Walmart’s historic achievement may redefine the limits of the global retail industry.