NEW YORK — Amazon is primed for success as the busy holiday season approaches.
The e-commerce powerhouse reported a surprise third-quarter profit, driven by a boost in revenue from its Prime Day promotion and continued strong growth in its cloud-computing offerings.
Results beat expectations, and shares jumped 10 percent in aftermarket trading.
Amazon’s strategy has long been to invest the money it makes back into its businesses, particularly by expanding offerings in its $99-a-year Prime loyalty program and its cloud-computing business, called Amazon Web Services. But in recent quarters, it has shown an ability to turn a profit, too.
Revenue jumped 23 percent during the quarter, helped by strong sales of electronics and general merchandise, a good sign for the Seattle retailer ahead of the crucial holiday months of November and December, when retailers make a substantial percentage of their annual sales.
Prime Day, Amazon’s 20th-anniversary sale in July, boosted revenue by 2 percentage points, the company said. Amazon did not break out sales figures. The company also said that more people signed up for a free trial of Prime on that day than any other day ever. And it said people converted to the paid program at the same rate they do on major shopping days such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the busy shopping days after Thanksgiving.
“Prime growth is fueling Amazon (in) getting a bigger share of the household budget,” said Cowen analyst John Blackledge. He estimates there are about 38 million Prime members in the U.S.
Read more : http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/transportation/amazon-q-results-up-on-strong-sales-cloud-computing-growth/article_1cfd54ec-ba99-5034-8f67-52b850fc9898.html
The e-commerce powerhouse reported a surprise third-quarter profit, driven by a boost in revenue from its Prime Day promotion and continued strong growth in its cloud-computing offerings.
Results beat expectations, and shares jumped 10 percent in aftermarket trading.
Amazon’s strategy has long been to invest the money it makes back into its businesses, particularly by expanding offerings in its $99-a-year Prime loyalty program and its cloud-computing business, called Amazon Web Services. But in recent quarters, it has shown an ability to turn a profit, too.
Revenue jumped 23 percent during the quarter, helped by strong sales of electronics and general merchandise, a good sign for the Seattle retailer ahead of the crucial holiday months of November and December, when retailers make a substantial percentage of their annual sales.
Prime Day, Amazon’s 20th-anniversary sale in July, boosted revenue by 2 percentage points, the company said. Amazon did not break out sales figures. The company also said that more people signed up for a free trial of Prime on that day than any other day ever. And it said people converted to the paid program at the same rate they do on major shopping days such as Black Friday and Cyber Monday, the busy shopping days after Thanksgiving.
“Prime growth is fueling Amazon (in) getting a bigger share of the household budget,” said Cowen analyst John Blackledge. He estimates there are about 38 million Prime members in the U.S.
Read more : http://www.tulsaworld.com/business/transportation/amazon-q-results-up-on-strong-sales-cloud-computing-growth/article_1cfd54ec-ba99-5034-8f67-52b850fc9898.html
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