Amazon Q3: AWS Revenue Up 39% to $45.98B, Free Cash Flow Falls to -$42.4B

6.4 · 1d ago · US · FINANCE

The Facts

  • AWS revenue grew 39% from the year-ago quarter. ✓2 · CNBC, TechCrunch
  • Jassy said AWS can grow north of 40% in each of 2027 and 2028 and become a trillion-dollar revenue business in the next five to 10 years; he described AWS as a $184 billion annualized run-rate business. ✓2 · CNBC, TechCrunch
  • AWS third-quarter revenue was $45.98 billion, up 39% year over year, above the $45.29 billion StreetAccount consensus; Q2 growth was about 37%. CNBC only
  • AWS operating income was $17.77 billion, up 55%, versus a $16.97 billion StreetAccount consensus. CNBC only
  • Amazon missed analyst expectations for total revenue and earnings per share in Q3. TechCrunch only
Dive deeper · 9 more factsShow less
  • Amazon's trailing-12-month free cash flow was negative $42.4 billion, versus positive $14.8 billion for the period ended September 30, 2025; Amazon attributed the spending largely to AI investment. TechCrunch only
  • Amazon still expects 2026 cash capital expenditures of about $220 billion, the majority for AWS, and CEO Andy Jassy said it expects to spend meaningfully more in 2027. TechCrunch only
  • Amazon forecast Q4 net sales of $240 billion to $247 billion. TechCrunch only
  • Amazon plans to make its Trainium AI chips available outside AWS, starting late in 2027. CNBC only
  • During the quarter AWS acquired data analysis startup DuckLabs and signed deals with Meta and OpenAI, per Amazon's statement. CNBC only
  • AWS now accounts for almost 23% of Amazon's revenue, a record. Microsoft's Azure is 72% the size of AWS, up from 58% two years ago. CNBC only
  • Amazon shares fell about 6% in after-market trading Thursday. TechCrunch only
  • Jassy said Prime Video has a revenue run rate in the tens of billions of dollars and is profitable. Amazon MGM Studios had more than $1.2 billion in global box office this year. TechCrunch only
  • Thursday Night Football's first six games averaged 17.7 million viewers, up 16% from last year, per Nielsen figures shared by Amazon. TechCrunch only

Context

Amazon reported third-quarter results on Thursday. AWS growth accelerated to 39%, its fastest since the fourth quarter of 2021 per CNBC, and beat analyst estimates for revenue and operating income.

Total revenue and EPS missed expectations, and trailing free cash flow turned sharply negative as AI infrastructure spending rose. Amazon kept its 2026 capital expenditure outlook at about $220 billion and signaled higher spending in 2027. The NY Times reported Amazon joined other tech firms announcing rising AI investment amid falling share prices.

How the Agent Panel Scored This

Independent AI personas each scored importance 1–10; the story's score is a trimmed mean (highest and lowest votes dropped). Vote spread: 2.

8 Business Analyst Amazon's quarterly earnings show a major AI-driven shift with AWS growth accelerating to 39%, a sharp swing to negative trailing free cash flow of -$42.4B, a $220B capex outlook, missed total revenue and EPS, and a roughly 6% after-hours share drop, all of which move a mega-cap stock and broader AI-infrastructure sentiment.
7 News Editor Amazon's quarterly earnings report with a major AWS growth acceleration, a sharp swing to negative trailing free cash flow, a $220 billion capex outlook, and a missed revenue and EPS consensus is significant business news affecting investors, the tech sector, and AI spending plans, though it is a scheduled earnings event rather than breaking crisis news.
7 Critical Reader Amazon's quarterly earnings report with verified results (AWS revenue beat, total revenue miss, trailing free cash flow turning to -$42.4B, a $220B capex plan) affects investors and the broader AI infrastructure market, but it is a company-specific earnings event rather than a sweeping market-wide shock.
6 Global Affairs Analyst This earnings report contains concrete new actions (Trainium chips external availability, DuckLabs acquisition, Meta and OpenAI deals, $220B capex guidance) from a major company, but it is a quarterly financial result with moderate rather than broad geopolitical or immediate widespread impact.
6 Science & Tech Analyst This is a significant quarterly earnings report from a major tech company showing accelerating AWS growth, a sharp swing to negative free cash flow tied to AI spending, and a missed revenue and EPS consensus, which matters to investors and the AI infrastructure market but is a routine earnings event with limited direct impact on most people.
6 Policy Expert Earnings report with concrete financial results and capex commitments of major significance to a large company and markets, but it is a corporate disclosure rather than enacted law, regulation, or executive government action, so it sits in the moderate-to-significant range.
6 Informed Citizen Amazon's quarterly earnings with a major AWS beat, a sharp swing to negative free cash flow, and a $220 billion capex plan affect investors and the AI market, but the story is a corporate earnings report with limited direct impact on ordinary people within a week.

Sources (5)

← All stories