Woolworths Group reported higher third-quarter (Q3) sales for the period ended 5 April 2026, with growth led by its Australian Food division.

Group sales rose 4.5% year-on-year (YoY) to A$18.09bn ($12.95bn) in the period.

Sales in Australian Food increased 5.9% to A$13.82bn while Woolworths Food Retail was up 7.3% excluding tobacco, supported by e-commerce and item growth.

Group e-commerce sales reached A$2.7bn, an increase of 20.2%, with e-commerce penetration rising to 16.6%.

Australian B2B sales grew 4.9% to A$1.50bn, supported by foodservice and export meat demand.

In New Zealand, food sales declined 5.2% to A$1.81bn.

Woolworths said sales increased 1.4% in local currency terms, or 2.1% on an Easter-adjusted basis, reflecting slower market conditions and operational disruption linked to a new store model.

W Living sales rose 4.8% to A$1.27bn. Within that division, BIG W increased 3.9%, and Petstock climbed 15.9%.

The company said average prices declined slightly because of ongoing price investment despite inflationary pressures.

Woolworths said trading momentum continued into March and April, with Australian Food sales rising 5.4%, or 6.5% excluding tobacco, while also pointing to growing customer caution.

For the full year, the group expects Australian Food EBIT [earnings before interest and tax] growth in the mid to high single-digit range, though not at the upper end, due to higher fuel costs and continued price investment.

It also said market conditions in New Zealand remain highly competitive, with second-half EBIT expected to be modestly below the prior year in local currency.

BIG W remains on track to deliver positive EBIT and cash flow for FY26.

Woolworths said it remains cautious on the outlook amid macroeconomic uncertainty and geopolitical developments, and expects to provide a further update at its full-year results in August.

Woolworths Group CEO Amanda Bardwell said: “Looking ahead, the conflict in the Middle East is creating greater uncertainty for our customers, suppliers and team at a time when cost-of-living pressures are already acute.

"While the impact on the group to date has been limited, higher fuel costs and secondary effects are likely to have an increasing inflationary impact as we move through the calendar year.”

"Woolworths posts 4.5% rise in Q3 sales" was originally created and published by Retail Insight Network, a GlobalData owned brand.

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