Fresh off crossing the coveted $1 trillion market valuation, Walmart is set to report its fourth-quarter earnings, with Wall Street keenly focused on how the retail giant plans to use artificial intelligence to accelerate growth and redefine the shopping experience. The results, covering the crucial holiday season, mark the first report under new CEO John Furner and are expected to showcase a company that is successfully blending its brick-and-mortar dominance with a high-tech future .
Analysts surveyed by LSEG anticipate a strong quarter, projecting earnings per share of $0.73 on revenue of $190.43 billion . This would cap a year of nearly 5% revenue growth, pushing the company’s annual take past the $700 billion mark . Beyond the numbers, however, investors are eager for a deeper understanding of how Walmart plans to leverage its recent strategic moves in artificial intelligence to maintain its momentum against both traditional rivals and e-commerce behemoth Amazon .
A New Era of “Agentic Commerce”
The spotlight of this earnings report is expected to shine brightly on Walmart’s aggressive pivot toward AI, a strategy CEO John Furner has termed “people-led, tech-powered” . The company is not merely dabbling in the technology but is embedding it into the very fabric of the consumer experience, moving beyond simple search functions to what is being called “agentic commerce” .
This vision was crystallized in January with the announcement of a landmark partnership with Google. By integrating its vast inventory with Google’s Gemini AI platform, Walmart is enabling customers to move from inspiration to purchase in a seamless, conversational manner . “The transition from traditional web or app search to agent-led commerce represents the next great evolution in retail,” Furner stated at the time of the announcement. “We aren’t just watching the shift, we are driving it” . This builds on a similar partnership with OpenAI, allowing purchases through ChatGPT, positioning Walmart at the forefront of AI-driven discovery .
Personalization, Efficiency, and the Bottom Line
These AI initiatives are dual-pronged: enhancing the customer experience while driving operational efficiency. For shoppers, AI promises hyper-personalization. By linking accounts, Gemini can recommend complementary items based on past purchases and combine them with existing carts, all while offering the rapid delivery options—as fast as 30 minutes—that Walmart’s supply chain is known for .
Behind the scenes, AI is already delivering tangible financial results. During the company’s Q4 2025 earnings call, former CEO Doug McMillon revealed that AI-powered coding tools had saved developers approximately 4 million hours by streamlining deployments and reducing bugs . This internal efficiency is now being scaled, with plans to roll out these tools to all developers in North America and India . Furthermore, Walmart is utilizing AI agents to help merchants identify supply chain issues and manage inventory more effectively, reducing costs and ensuring shelves are stocked with what customers want .
Leadership and Market Confidence
The market’s optimism is also tied to key leadership changes that signal a deepening commitment to technology. New CEO John Furner, a company veteran, has been instrumental in driving the U.S. business toward digital integration. He will be succeeded as head of Walmart U.S. by David Guggina, whose resume—leading e-commerce at Walmart and a decade of leadership at Amazon—underscores the company’s focus on modernizing its operations . UBS noted in a recent report that these appointments suggest Walmart is “well poised to take its modernization further” .
The company’s symbolic move to list its stock on the tech-heavy Nasdaq, announced late last year, further cements this identity shift . CFO John David Rainey framed the change as perfectly aligned with the company’s long-term strategy, stating, “Walmart is setting a new standard for omnichannel retail by integrating automation and AI to build smarter, faster, and more connected experiences for customers” .
As Walmart steps into its new valuation tier and a new leadership era, Thursday’s earnings report is more than a financial recap. It is an opportunity for the company to lay out a roadmap for the future of retail—a future that looks increasingly intelligent, automated, and personalized. While challenges like inflation and tariff uncertainties remain, Walmart’s significant investments in AI signal a conviction that the technology is the key to unlocking the next level of growth and maintaining its relevance for the next generation of shoppers .
