Amazon Posts Fastest AWS Growth in 15 Quarters

Companies

• AMZN

Article body

The online retail and cloud-computing giant Amazon.com (AMZN) reported first-quarter results that marked its fastest growth in Amazon Web Services revenue in 15 quarters. Net sales rose 17% year-over-year to $181.5 billion, accelerating from 14% growth in the prior quarter [1][2][3].

The quarter stood out for a sharp rebound in AWS momentum, which grew 28% to $37.6 billion, outpacing the 24% gain in the fourth quarter and the 20% increase for full-year 2025 [1][2][3]. North America sales climbed 12% to $104.1 billion, while the international segment expanded 19%—or 11% excluding currency effects—on stronger demand across Europe and Asia [1][2][3].

Net income surged 77% to $30.3 billion, or $2.78 a share, from $17.1 billion, or $1.59 a share, a year earlier [1][2][4]. The bottom line included $16.8 billion in pre-tax gains tied to the company’s stake in artificial-intelligence startup Anthropic. Operating income rose 30% to $23.9 billion, with AWS margins holding at 37.7% despite heavier infrastructure spending [1][2].

AI-driven initiatives underpinned much of the growth. Amazon’s custom chips business reached a $20 billion annual revenue run rate, doubling from the prior quarter, while advertising revenue surpassed $70 billion on a trailing-twelve-month basis [1][2]. The company said its Bedrock AI platform processed more tokens in the quarter than in all prior years combined, with customer spend rising 170% sequentially [1].

Free cash flow fell to $1.2 billion for the trailing twelve months, down from $25.9 billion a year earlier, as capital expenditures surged to support AI infrastructure [1][2][5]. Amazon projected $200 billion in total capex for 2026, up from $131.8 billion in 2025, and said its Trainium2 chips are fully subscribed through mid-2026 [1][2].

For the second quarter, the company guided to net sales of $194.0 billion to $199.0 billion, implying 16% to 19% year-over-year growth, and operating income of $20.0 billion to $24.0 billion [1][6]. The outlook reflects continued investment in AI and logistics, including expansion of same-day delivery to over 1 billion items in 2026 and new ultra-fast delivery options in Tokyo and Brazil [1].

Citations

citations[6]{marker,ticker,item,date,accession,source}:
  1,AMZN,ex_99_1,2026-04-29,0001018724-26-000012,null
  2,AMZN,ex_99_1,2026-02-05,0001018724-26-000002,null
  3,AMZN,ex_99_1,2026-02-05,0001018724-26-000002,null
  4,AMZN,ex_99_1,2026-04-29,0001018724-26-000012,null
  5,AMZN,ex_99_1,2026-04-29,0001018724-26-000012,null
  6,AMZN,ex_99_1,2026-04-29,0001018724-26-000012,null