Amazon reports strong Q3 results
Despite facing the headwinds of uncertain economic times, Amazon reported that net sales increased 15% to $127.1 billion in the third quarter, which ended Sept. 30, 2022, compared with $110.8 billion in the same period in 2021. Excluding the $5 billion unfavorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter, net sales increased 19% compared with the third quarter 2021.
Amazon also reported that its North America segment sales increased 20% year-over-year to $78.8 billion.
International segment sales decreased 5% year-over-year to $27.7 billion, but increased 12% excluding changes in foreign exchange rates.
AWS segment sales increased 27% year-over-year to $20.5 billion, or increased 28% excluding changes in foreign exchange rates.
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Amazon's operating income decreased to $2.5 billion in the third quarter, compared with $4.9 billion in third quarter 2021.
The company's North America segment operating loss was $0.4 billion, compared with operating income of $0.9 billion in third quarter 2021.
Amazon's international segment operating loss was $2.5 billion, compared with an operating loss of $0.9 billion in third quarter 2021.
AWS segment operating income was $5.4 billion, compared with operating income of $4.9 billion in third quarter 2021.
Net income decreased to $2.9 billion in the third quarter, or 28 cents per diluted share, compared with $3.2 billion, or 31 cents per diluted share, in the third quarter of 2021.
Third quarter 2022 net income includes a pre-tax valuation gain of $1.1 billion included in non-operating income from the common stock investment in Rivian Automotive, the company said.
Operating cash flow decreased 27% to $39.7 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with $54.7 billion for the trailing 12 months ended Sept. 30, 2021.
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“In the past four months, employees across our consumer businesses have worked relentlessly to put together compelling Prime Member Deal Events with our eighth annual Prime Day and the brand new Prime Early Access Sale in early October. The customer response to both events was quite positive, and it’s clear that particularly during these uncertain economic times, customers appreciate Amazon’s continued focus on value and convenience,” said Andy Jassy, Amazon CEO.
Jassy continued, “We’re also encouraged by the steady progress we’re making on lowering costs in our stores fulfillment network, and have a set of initiatives that we’re methodically working through that we believe will yield a stronger cost structure for the business moving forward. There is obviously a lot happening in the macroeconomic environment, and we’ll balance our investments to be more streamlined without compromising our key long-term, strategic bets. What won’t change is our maniacal focus on the customer experience, and we feel confident that we’re ready to deliver a great experience for customers this holiday shopping season.”
Amazon shared that it introduced the first-ever Prime Early Access Sale, a two-day shopping event on Oct. 11-12 exclusively for Prime members in 15 countries. Customers could choose from hundreds of thousands of deals across all best-selling categories, such as apparel, home, toys and Amazon devices. Amazon’s selling partners, most of which are small and medium-sized businesses, also took part in the event, and customers responded by ordering more than 100 million items from these businesses.
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The company also noted that it rolled out Venmo as a new payment option in the United States, giving customers more choice during the checkout experience.
Additionally, Amazon shared that it continued to collaborate with leading retailers and stadiums to equip their locations with Just Walk Out technology for checkout-free shopping and Amazon One for palm recognition and payment. One or both of these technologies are now available at Texas A&M’s Kyle Field, Lumen Field in Seattle, Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, and a Hudson Nonstop at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport. Amazon also continued to roll out Amazon One at Whole Foods Market stores with the technology now available at over 65 stores in California.
Moreover, Amazon pointed out that it announced plans to hire 150,000 people for open seasonal, full-time and part-time roles across its operations network in the United States to help deliver for customers during the holidays.
Amazon also noted that it committed $147 million to create and preserve 1,260 affordable homes across the Washington, D.C., metro area in partnership with minority-led organizations. This investment is the latest initiative by the Amazon Housing Equity Fund, a $2 billion commitment to create and preserve affordable homes in Amazon’s hometown communities.
Lastly, Amazon said that it expects its fourth quarter net sales to be between $140 billion and $148 billion, or to grow between 2% and 8% compared with fourth quarter 2021. This guidance anticipates an unfavorable impact of approximately 460 basis points from foreign exchange rates. The company expects operating income in the fourth quarter to be between $0 and $4 billion, compared with $3.5 billion in fourth quarter 2021.