Walmart (NASDAQ: WMT) and Costco (NASDAQ: COST) have shown substantial growth in early 2026, with Costco’s shares up over 9% and Walmart’s up more than 12% year-to-date, contrasting with a decline in the S&P 500. Both retailers attribute their success to strong e-commerce sales, with Walmart reporting a 27% increase last quarter — the eighth consecutive quarter of over 20% growth — and Costco experiencing a 22.6% rise during the same period.
Despite this progress, Walmart and Costco are not gaining market share from Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN), which has expanded its e-commerce market share from 34.4% in 2024 to 35.7% in 2025. Amazon’s retail operations exhibit a growth rate of 10%, outpacing Walmart’s 5.6% and Costco’s 7.4% overall revenue increases in their most recent quarters. Amazon’s enterprise value is significantly lower, trading at 10.8 times projected 2026 EBITDA, compared to Walmart’s 21 times and Costco’s nearly 30 times, raising questions about investors’ valuations.
