Amazon reports better-than-expected revenue and profits for the third quarter

NEW YORK (AP) — Amazon on Thursday reported strong revenue and profits from the summer months driven by growth in online sales and its advertising business.

For the three months that ended on Sept. 30, the company said it earned $143.1 billion in revenue, a 13% increase compared to the same period last year. The e-commerce giant made $9.9 billion in profits, topping analysts’ expectations and sending its stocks higher in after-hours trading.

In a prepared statement, CEO Andy Jassy said the company had a strong quarter as it improved its delivery speed and its advertising business grew robustly.

Consumers have been resilient in their spending despite rising interest rates and stubbornly high inflation, which has steadily eased since last year. Amazon said Thursday its retail business grew by 6% during the third quarter. It was boosted by the company’s popular Prime Day sales event held in July. Revenue from another sales event held earlier this month for Prime members will be included in Amazon’s earnings for the October-December period.

Aside from the core e-commerce business, investors have been focused on the slowdown of Amazon Web Services, the company’s profitable cloud computing unit also known as AWS. The unit had propped Amazon’s earnings during a slowdown in online sales in the aftermath of the pandemic. AWS began to see lower rates of growth in the past year as companies cut costs amid high inflation and broader concerns about the economy.

Jassy said on Thursday AWS, which grew by 12%, continued to stabilize. Analysts surveyed by FactSet had expected growth of roughly 13%.

The report comes as Amazon is facing regulatory scrutiny on several fronts. Last month, the Federal Trade Commission and 17 states filed a landmark lawsuit against the company, alleging the e-commerce giant was abusing its position in the marketplace through anti-competitive practices that boost prices for consumers on and off its platform.

The agency, led by Big Tech critic Lina Khan, is also challenging the company’s business practices in separate lawsuit that accuses Amazon of duping consumers into enrolling in the Prime subscription program. Amazon denies both claims.

The company said it expects to earn between $160 billion and $167 billion during the fourth quarter.