Convenience. Membership. Delivery times. Delivery density. eCommerce. Marketplaces.

You might think these were buzzwords from Amazon’s second-quarter earnings call. But they weren’t. These themes were mentioned most frequently on Walmart’s second-quarter earnings call on Thursday (Aug. 15), when the company reported slow but steady growth and a “reasonably cautious” outlook for consumer spending in the second half of the year.

“So far, we’re not seeing a weaker consumer overall,” CEO Doug McMillon told the conference call audience. “Our customers and members around the world continue to want four things. They want value, they want a wide range of items and services, they want a convenient and enjoyable shopping experience, and they want to do business with a company they trust. Those four things are constant, but the way we deliver them is changing, and changing quickly. The results we’re delivering are due to real progress on those dimensions.”

In numbers

According to the figures, quarterly sales across all Walmart business segments increased by about 5%.

Consolidated operating income increased $0.6 billion, or 8.5%; adjusted operating income increased 7.2% due to higher gross margins and increasing membership revenue, as well as lower e-commerce losses. But the real headlines of the announcement were the optimistic outlook for spending across all income groups, including the paycheck-to-paycheck segment, and the competitive positioning against Amazon.

“Across categories, we are offering low prices and capturing customer attention, including in general merchandise. With Walmart’s U.S. sales growth in Hardlines, Home and Fashion, we are also seeing increased engagement across all income groups, with higher-income households continuing to see the largest growth,” said CFO John David Rainey.

Although neither McMillon nor Rainey mentioned Amazon by name, both repeatedly emphasized Walmart’s digital prowess and delivery efficiency – qualities that are usually Amazon’s trademark.

That approach differed from the first-quarter conference call, which focused on Walmart’s price cuts as a hedge against inflation. That message was delivered Thursday but took a back seat to the focus on the second half of the year.

McMillon said prices at Walmart US and Sam’s Club US were slightly deflationary. Overall, Walmart’s US grocery prices were up slightly year over year but down 30 basis points from the first quarter. “Customers of all income levels are looking for value for money, and we have that,” McMillon said.

Purchasing postponements

Where these customers find these values ​​is changing at Walmart.

Among the statistics cited during the discussion portion of the quarterly earnings call were: total e-commerce sales increased 21%, Walmart Marketplace sales increased 32%, Sam’s Club and Walmart+ membership revenue increased 21%, and store deliveries increased 50% for the full first quarter.

Rainey specifically emphasized that e-commerce sales growth was the biggest contributor to the successful quarter. The company’s relatively new customer data and analytics division saw a 200% increase, according to Rainey.

Perhaps most importantly, Walmart raised its forecast for the year to 3.75% to 4.75% given the overall economic situation in the U.S. Rainey did not rule out the negative impact of a possible recession, electoral instability or global geopolitical instability. He described his approach as “appropriately cautious.”

“Each of the months of the second quarter was relatively consistent,” Rainey said. “If you look at the pure comparables for each month, July was actually a little higher. But we think that’s largely due to how the days of the week were distributed in the last week of the month, and we didn’t see a dip. And our forecast for the second half of the year is actually more of a continuation of what we’ve seen. Even through the first couple of weeks of August, things have been remarkably consistent here. So I know everyone is looking for information that might indicate further weakness in our members and customers. We’re not seeing it.”

For a brand known for focusing on customers who live paycheck to paycheck, the conference call was surprising in that it contained no evidence of the kind of compromise consumers had shown in other second-quarter earnings calls, particularly in the quick-service and restaurant businesses.

This quote from the Food Institute summarizing its recent second-quarter results is telling: “For anyone paying attention, the overall trend in the industry in the second quarter was no great surprise,” wrote one of its analysts. “Inflation is easing, but the price increases of the past two years and more are clearly having a lagged impact. The lower-income consumer is faltering. Between price reductions at quick-service restaurants and a significant decline in breakfast, there are some signs that even financially better-off customers are consuming more at home.”

But the low-income consumer wasn’t in trouble at Walmart. And lower income shouldn’t be associated with paycheck-to-paycheck status, either. According to PYMNTS Intelligence, 62% of U.S. consumers now live paycheck to paycheck, and that includes 48% of consumers who earn more than $100,000 a year.

In other words, higher incomes don’t necessarily insulate people from the financial stress that comes with living paycheck to paycheck. In fact, 36% of those earning more than $200,000 annually say they live paycheck to paycheck, according to a recent edition of PYMNTS Intelligence’s “New Reality Check: The Paycheck-to-Paycheck Report: Why One-Third of High Earners Live Paycheck to Paycheck.”