Walmart on Path to Trillion-Dollar Status After OpenAI Pact
Trillion-Dollar Club Is Dominated by Tech Names
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Walmart Inc. is on track to join the “elite” crop of companies with a trillion-dollar valuation after its announced partnership with OpenAI powered the stock to a record high, according to Mizuho analyst David Bellinger.
The alliance with the Sam Altman-led company was unveiled on Oct. 14 and will allow Walmart shoppers to browse and purchase products directly on ChatGPT by clicking a “buy” button. While the offering won’t include fresh foods, customers will be able to purchase items like packaged foods, apparel and more from both Walmart and its Sam’s Club chain.
Walmart shares jumped 5% on the news, their biggest one-day gain since April when tariffs were paused, bringing its market capitalization to more than $854 billion. The stock was up about 0.6% in premarket trading on Oct. 15.
The retail giant is “clearly ahead of the curve here, while others have been slow to adapt or even made efforts to block AI web crawlers,” said Bellinger in a note, calling the tie-up “a major step forward in the adoption and broader acceleration of agentic commerce.”
Walmart ranks No. 1 on the Transport Topics Top 100 list of the largest private carriers in North America.
Cracking the trillion-dollar threshold would vault Walmart into a rare group of stocks, one that remains overwhelmingly dominated by technology names. Of the 11 other stocks that are currently worth $1 trillion or more, only Berkshire Hathaway Inc. and Saudi Aramco sit outside of the tech sphere.
The OpenAI pact highlights Walmart’s ability to “remain at the cutting edge of technology,” according to Citigroup Inc. analyst Paul Lejuez. While OpenAI has other retail partners, including Etsy Inc. and Shopify Inc., the Walmart partnership is “unique.”
The deal adds to what is already a bullish setup for Walmart shares despite lingering questions about the state of the economy, according to Bellinger, who has a buy rating on the stock.
“Shares can still work in a lukewarm economy and combined with early/developing initiatives, represent a must-own name” in the consumer space, he said.
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Walmart shares have been on a tear for much of the last three years as the retailer captured more market share thanks in part to its low prices attracting shoppers who are increasingly prioritizing value.
After gaining more than 11% in 2023, the Bentonville, Ark.-based firm jumped nearly 72% last year, its biggest annual gain since 1998.
“The market has recognized the advantages of Walmart’s combination of tech and old-school retail model,” John Zolidis, president and founder of Quo Vadis Capital Inc., said.
