Consumer Behavior

Groceries, online shopping drive Walmart Q1 sales boost

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May 19, 2021

A 37% spike in consumer online shopping and increased grocery orders were prime reasons Walmart's Q1 sales jumped 6% and operating income increased 26.8%.

The solid earnings report prompted the retailer to raise its outlook moving forward for both Q2 and the full year, according to a company news release.

Financial highlights include:

• Consolidated operating income was $6.9 billion, an increase of 32.3%, with strength across the company.
• U.S. e-commerce sales grew 37% with strong results across all channels, contributing approximately 360 basis points to comp sales. Sales more than doubled over the last two years.
• Total revenue was $138.3 billion, an increase of $3.7 billion, or 2.7%.

"This was a strong quarter. Every segment performed well, and we're encouraged by traffic and grocery market share trends. Our optimism is higher than it was at the beginning of the year. In the U.S., customers clearly want to get out and shop. We have a strong position as our store environment improves and e-commerce continues to grow. Stimulus in the U.S. had an impact, and the second half has more uncertainty than a typical year. We anticipate continued pent-up demand throughout 2021. Our results reflect the continued hard work and commitment our associates have shown throughout the pandemic — serving others and helping provide vaccines — and we're grateful to them," Doug McMillon, president and CEO, Walmart, said in the release.