Amazon's Cloud Unit Surges 39% as Overall Results Miss Estimates

Amazon's fiscal third-quarter profits and net sales missed Wall Street analysts' estimates, though its cloud computing unit posted strong growth. Shares fell over 6% in after-market trading as investors focused on the core business. Net income was $20.69 billion, or $1.89 per share, down from $21.19 billion a year ago, while sales rose to $201.94 billion from $180.17 billion. Analysts had expected $1.97 per share on $202.2 billion in sales, per FactSet. AWS sales grew 39.3% in the quarter ended Sept. 30, its fastest rate in nearly five years, up from 37% previously. Amazon also offered a cautious fourth-quarter outlook and plans to hire 300,000 U.S. seasonal workers, up from 250,000 last year.