Amazon Inc. on Thursday reported third-quarter financial results that exceeded revenue expectations, driven by accelerated growth in its cloud computing division, Amazon Web Services (AWS). The company also issued guidance for its fourth quarter, projecting continued sales growth.
The technology and e-commerce company posted total revenue of $180.17 billion for the quarter ending Sept. 30, a 13% increase from the same period last year. This figure surpassed the $177.75 billion consensus estimate from financial market data provider LSEG.
Earnings per share were reported at $1.95, compared to an LSEG estimate of $1.57. The company’s operating income was $17.42 billion. Amazon noted this figure was affected by $4.8 billion in special charges; without these charges, operating income would have been $21.7 billion.
A significant contributor to the results was Amazon Web Services, which recorded revenue of $33 billion, a 20.2% increase year-over-year. The growth rate for AWS accelerated from the 17.5% reported in the second quarter. The division’s operating margin was 34.6%, and it ended the quarter with a services backlog of $200 billion.
In the company’s earnings statement, CEO Andy Jassy addressed the performance of the cloud unit. “AWS is growing at a pace we haven’t seen since 2022, re-accelerating to 20.2% YoY,” Jassy said. “We continue to see strong demand in AI and core infrastructure, and we’ve been focused on accelerating capacity — adding more than 3.8 gigawatts (GW) in the past 12 months.”
During an investor call, Jassy added that the company plans to continue investing in its infrastructure. “You’re going to see us continue to be very aggressive in investing in capacity because we see the demand,” he stated.
Amazon reported capital expenditures of approximately $34.2 billion in the third quarter. The company updated its full-year capital expenditure forecast to approximately $125 billion.
Other segments of the company also saw growth. North America sales increased by 11%, while international sales rose by 14%. Revenue from online stores, third-party seller services, and advertising services also exceeded analyst forecasts.
Looking ahead, Amazon projected net sales for the fourth quarter to be between $206 billion and $213 billion. This range represents an anticipated growth of 10% to 13% compared to the fourth quarter of the previous year. The company forecast its fourth-quarter operating income to be in the range of $21 billion to $26 billion. Following the release of the report, Amazon’s shares increased in after-hours trading.
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