Amazon profit quadruples to $80m

Source: Retail Digital

Date :10/24/2007 3:41:49 AM

Amazon, the biggest Internet retailer, said Tuesday that third-quarter earnings quadrupled to $80 million on strong sales of electronics and jewelry.

Net profit climbed from $19 million a year earlier whilst revenue increased 41 percent to $3.26 billion, helped by the 2.5 million copies sold of the seventh Harry Potter book - Amazon's biggest new product release.

Sales of electronics and general merchandise gained more than those of CDs and DVDs as Amazon expanded its jewelry and grocery offerings as consumers purchased other products.

The retailer also saw an increase in more profitable sales by third-party sellers, who advertise their wares on the Amazon.com site – growing to 32 percent of total sales compared to 30 percent last year.

Expectation

Amazon said it anticipated a record holiday season, with expected sales of between $5.1 billion and $5.45 billion.

The company increased its revenue forecast for the fiscal year to between $14.26 billion and $14.61 billion, from earlier guidance of $13.80 billion to $14.30 billion. Analysts are looking for $14.19 billion.

Shares in Amazon surged 9.6 percent from $9.53 to close at $100.82 before the results were released.

The stock has more than doubled this year.

October 24 2007

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