From CNET: Amazon reported on Thursday a steep drop in third-quarter profits amid slowing sales growth and indicated that the next quarter would also be tough for the e-commerce giant.
Net sales during the July-September quarter climbed 15%, to $110.8 billion, but missed forecasts of roughly $111.81 billion, according to numbers from Bloomberg. The results did, however, fall within the $106 billion to $112 billion range Amazon had forecast.
Earnings per share plunged more than 50%, to $6.12 per share. Amazon stock went down in after-hours trading, dropping more than 3.75%. The company's stock closed at $3,446.57 during regular trading. The company was a profit juggernaut in 2020, when consumers sought to avoid stores as the pandemic reached its height.
In a statement, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said the company had worked hard to keep offering its services while demand surged during the pandemic. That demand added significantly to Amazon's sales through 2020 and the start of 2021, but it also involved big expenditures, Jassy said.
"It's driven extraordinary investments across our businesses to satisfy customer needs -- just one example is that we've nearly doubled the size of our fulfillment network since the pandemic began," he said.
View: Full Article
