Strong momentum in Amazon Web Services continues to anchor corporate expansion, supported by extensive customer commitments running through 2028. However, massive capital outlays for data centers are exerting downward pressure on liquidity, with FactSet estimating a $9.9 billion negative free cash flow for the period. To manage operational costs amidst this technical buildup, leadership has maintained tight control over internal corporate headcount through strategic workforce reductions.
Key points
Amazon has reduced corporate headcount by over 57,000 positions since 2022 to control cos…: Amazon has reduced corporate headcount by over 57,000 positions since 2022 to control costs.
Access restrictions were placed on external artificial intelligence services such as Perp…: Access restrictions were placed on external artificial intelligence services such as Perplexity and Meta's Muse.
The company's proprietary Alexa for Shopping assistant has reached an active base exceedi…: The company's proprietary Alexa for Shopping assistant has reached an active base exceeding 400 million shoppers.
Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1
Amazon is slated to report third-quarter earnings results after the bell on Thursday.
Here's what analysts are expecting, according to LSEG:
- Earnings per share: $1.96 adjusted
- Revenue: $202.31 billion
Wall Street is also looking at other key revenue numbers:
- Amazon Web Services: $45.48 billion, according to StreetAccount
- Advertising: $20.82 billion, according to StreetAccount
Investors expect to see robust growth in Amazon's cloud segment. AWS sales are predicted to grow 38%, according to StreetAccount, compared with a 37% gain last quarter. It would mark AWS's fifth consecutive quarter of revenue acceleration.
That momentum isn't expected to slow down. CEO Andy Jassy said Amazon's cloud capacity is "largely sold out" for next year, and it's received significant commitments for 2028 as well.
"We always leave a certain amount for on demand and our inference service Bedrock or EC2, but largely sold out all the big chunks," Jassy said on an Andreessen Horowitz podcast last week. "A good chunk of '28 is sold out."
Wall Street will be listening for any commentary from Amazon executives around AI spending.
British ministers are injecting substantial taxpayer capital into a joint 10-year, £2.5bn research venture to develop the next-generation UltraFan engine. The intervention aims to counter aggressive foreign competition from nations like Germany and anchor high-value aerospace manufacturing domestically. Success depends on breaking into the narrow-body jet market, a lucrative sector Rolls-Royce has not served for roughly two decades.
Exxon and Chevron have cancelled their planned trips to an oil show in the United Arab Emirates, according to a recent report. The energy companies withdrew from the event due to safety concerns.
Major U.S. energy producers are altering their participation at one of the world's premier petroleum conferences amid evolving travel and operational considerations. The decision curtails direct executive representation from two of the industry's largest players at the key Middle Eastern event. This absence marks a notable withdrawal of top Western corporate presence from the annual international gathering.