Two National Guard members shot near White House
Investing.com -- The e-commerce landscape continues to evolve rapidly with three major players capturing significant market share through strategic innovations and operational improvements.
Get more stock picks by Wall Street analysts by upgrading to InvestingPro - get 60% off today
Bank of America’s latest analysis highlights how Amazon, Walmart, and Shopify are reshaping the digital retail space through faster delivery capabilities and expanded service offerings.
Amazon leads the pack with impressive growth metrics and market dominance. According to Bank of America estimates, Amazon’s US GMV excluding Whole Foods Market grew 13% year-over-year to $137 billion in the third quarter of 2025, accelerating 1 percentage point compared to the second quarter.
The e-commerce giant expanded its share of US e-commerce GMV by 1.7 percentage points year-over-year to 44.5%. This growth is largely attributed to superior delivery speeds enabled by improved inventory placement and robotics investments, with Amazon on track for its fastest Prime delivery speed for the third consecutive year.
Fresh grocery delivery capabilities are creating additional value, with management noting that grocery shoppers tend to return to the site twice as frequently as non-grocery shoppers. Bank of America maintains a Buy rating on Amazon.
In other developments, Amazon reported that its Amazon Web Services (AWS) revenue growth accelerated to 20.2% year-over-year in the third quarter. The company also completed a bond offering of nearly $15 billion, while TD Cowen reiterated its Buy rating.
Walmart has demonstrated remarkable online growth, with US e-commerce sales increasing 28% year-over-year in the third quarter of 2025, accelerating 2 percentage points from the previous quarter. Excluding advertising sales and assuming a 10% take rate on third-party GMV, Bank of America estimates Walmart’s online GMV grew 34% year-over-year to $36.1 billion, with its market share expanding 2.2 percentage points to 11.7%.
Management reports consistent share gains throughout the year, likely driven by fast shipping execution—35% of digital orders were delivered in under three hours, partly due to Walmart’s Spark Driver program. High-margin areas like advertising and membership fees are improving e-commerce profitability. Bank of America maintains a Buy rating on Walmart.
More recently, Walmart has been testing new advertising formats within its AI shopping assistant, Sparky. The company’s strong third-quarter performance, which included a 4.5% rise in U.S. comparable sales, prompted positive analyst actions from firms including DA Davidson and Piper Sandler.
Shopify rounds out the top three with strong growth metrics. Bank of America estimates Shopify’s US GMV grew 30% year-over-year to $57 billion in the third quarter, accelerating 1 percentage point from the second quarter.
The platform showed strength across multiple categories, including apparel (Shopify’s largest category), health and beauty, home and garden, and food and beverage. Shopify’s GMV share expanded by an estimated 3.1 percentage points year-over-year to 18.4%.
The company continues to add large brands, including Estée Lauder, Mattel, and Aldo in the third quarter, while expanding into new categories. For the fourth quarter, Shopify’s sales growth outlook is mid-to-high 20% year-over-year, exceeding earlier Street expectations. Bank of America maintains a Buy rating on Shopify.
Shopify’s third-quarter results featured accelerating gross merchandise volume (GMV) growth of 32% year-over-year, its highest level since the pandemic period. Following the report, Benchmark reiterated a Buy rating, while BNP Paribas Exane initiated coverage with a Neutral rating.
This article was generated with the support of AI and reviewed by an editor. For more information see our T&C.