Amazon beats analysts’ forecasts, but cloud disappoints. These are some of the highlights of the fourth-quarter 2024 data presented by the e-commerce giant. The results above analysts’ estimates come from the boom in sales during the holiday season, which offset the weakness of the cloud computing unit.
Main aspects
- The Seattle-based e-commerce and technology giant reported revenue of $187.8 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024 , up 10% from the same period in 2023 and slightly above the $187.3 billion analysts had expected.
- Net income increased to $20.0 billion, or $1.86 per share, nearly double the 2023 equivalent of $10.6 billion (or $1 per share) and up from FactSet estimates of $1.49 .
- Operating profit rose to $21.2 billion, compared to $13.2 billion in the fourth quarter of 2023.
- However, the company expects revenue for the current quarter in the range of $151 billion to $155.5 billion , below the $158.56 billion estimated by analysts.
- Amazon also reported that revenue from its online shopping business reached $75.5 billion , up 7% from the same period in 2023.
Annual performances
- Looking ahead to 2024, net sales increased 11% to $638.0 billion in 2024, up from $574.8 billion in 2023. Alongside this, AWS segment sales increased 19% year-over-year to $107.6 billion.
- Operating profit increased to $68.6 billion in 2024, up from $36.9 billion in 2023.
- Net income nearly doubled from $30.4 billion ($2.90 per share) to $59.2 billion in 2024, or $5.53 per share.
Indications for the first quarter of 2025
- Net sales are expected to be in the range of $151.0 billion to $155.5 billion , or grow 5% to 9% compared to the first quarter of 2024. This guidance includes an unusually large and unfavorable impact of approximately $2.1 billion, or 150 basis points, from foreign exchange rates. Also, as a reminder, the Leap Year impact added approximately $1.5 billion to net sales in the first quarter of 2024.
- Operating income is expected to be between $14.0 billion and $18.0 billion , compared to $15.3 billion in the first quarter of 2024.
- This guidance assumes, among other things, that no further corporate acquisitions, restructurings or legal arrangements are concluded.
AWS data
Sales of Amazon Web Services, the company’s main cloud computing service, rose 19% in the fourth quarter, although they slightly missed analysts’ expectations of $28.9 billion . That’s likely pushing the company’s stock lower, which is down just over 2% in premarket trading .
“We think virtually every application we know today will be reinvented with AI in it,” said Andy Jassy , Amazon’s CEO. “We believe our business, our customers and our shareholders will be satisfied in the medium and long term with our commitment to this AI capital and business opportunity.” As reported by AFP , Jassy also noted that Amazon, like many others, was “impressed” by DeepSeek, the Chinese AI company whose chatbot recently became the most downloaded app in the United States.
