Amazon Reports Its Best Quarterly Profit Ever, But Q4 Earnings Fall Short Of Expectations

Fourth quarter sales up 22 percent, but earnings-per-share significantly less than expected.

Matt McGee on January 28, 2016

amazon-earnings-stock-ss-1920

Amazon shares are down more than 13 percent in after-hours trading thanks to a Q4 (i.e., the holiday quarter) earnings report that fell short of expectations.

Sure, the e-commerce giant reported its best-ever quarterly profit of $35.7 billion, but that’s below the $35.98 billion that Wall Street was expecting. Analytics also forecast earnings-per-share (EPS) of $1.56, but Amazon reported $1 EPS today. In its earnings announcement, Amazon says its profit was hurt by the “$1.2 billion unfavorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter.”

For the full calendar year, Amazon says net sales were up 20 percent to $107 billion.

Amazon also used today’s earnings announcement to tout the growth of Amazon Prime. While it didn’t reveal actual membership figures, it did say that Prime memberships grew by 51 percent worldwide in 2015, and were up 47 percent just in the US.

About The Author

Matt McGee

Matt McGee is the Editor-In-Chief of Search Engine Land. His news career includes time spent in TV, radio, and print journalism. After leaving traditional media in the mid-1990s, he began developing and marketing websites and continued to provide consulting services for more than 15 years. His SEO and social media clients ranged from mom-and-pop small businesses to one of the Top 5 online retailers. Matt is a longtime speaker at marketing events around the U.S., including keynote and panelist roles. He can be found on Twitter at @MattMcGee and/or on Google Plus. You can read Matt’s disclosures on his personal blog. You can reach Matt via email using our Contact page.