Global Finance News
31 Jul 2026, 09:40
Amazon Stock Surges 12% After Blowout Q2 Results Fueled by AWS and AI Growth
Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) shares jumped 12% in premarket trading on Friday after the e-commerce and cloud giant delivered a strong second-quarter earnings report, with accelerating AWS growth, record profitability and robust AI momentum driving investor optimism.
Second-quarter net sales rose 20% year over year to $200.6 billion, while operating income climbed 43% to $27.5 billion. AWS revenue surged 37% to $42.2 billion—its fastest growth in 18 quarters—lifting AWS operating income to $16.6 billion. Net income more than tripled to $62.6 billion, or $5.75 per diluted share, although results included a significant gain from the company's investment in Anthropic.
AWS and AI Businesses Power Another Strong Quarter
Amazon's cloud business continued to benefit from booming AI demand. CEO Andy Jassy said AWS's AI business and custom chips business each surpassed a $25 billion annual revenue run rate, while Trainium adoption accelerated through multi-year commitments from Anthropic and OpenAI. Amazon also expanded Bedrock with new frontier AI models, including OpenAI's GPT-5.6, and announced a series of new AI infrastructure and enterprise software products.
Outside the cloud segment, the company reported another strong quarter across its retail and advertising businesses. North America sales increased 16%, international sales rose 15%, advertising continued to post robust growth, and Prime delivery speeds reached new records. Amazon also highlighted expanding adoption of Alexa+, Amazon Business, Amazon Pharmacy and its satellite internet initiative.
Guidance Remains Solid
For the third quarter, Amazon expects net sales between $197.0 billion and $202.0 billion, representing 9% to 12% year-over-year growth, while operating income is projected between $22.5 billion and $26.5 billion, well above the prior year's $17.4 billion. Management noted that AI infrastructure investments remain elevated, with capital spending continuing to support long-term growth.
What to Watch
The strong premarket rally reflects investor confidence that Amazon's AI investments are translating into accelerating cloud growth and expanding profitability. Going forward, markets will closely monitor AWS growth, AI monetization, capital spending, retail margins and the company's ability to sustain double-digit revenue growth while maintaining strong earnings momentum.
Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) shares jumped 12% in premarket trading on Friday after the e-commerce and cloud giant delivered a strong second-quarter earnings report, with accelerating AWS growth, record profitability and robust AI momentum driving investor optimism.
Second-quarter net sales rose 20% year over year to $200.6 billion, while operating income climbed 43% to $27.5 billion. AWS revenue surged 37% to $42.2 billion—its fastest growth in 18 quarters—lifting AWS operating income to $16.6 billion. Net income more than tripled to $62.6 billion, or $5.75 per diluted share, although results included a significant gain from the company's investment in Anthropic.
AWS and AI Businesses Power Another Strong Quarter
Amazon's cloud business continued to benefit from booming AI demand. CEO Andy Jassy said AWS's AI business and custom chips business each surpassed a $25 billion annual revenue run rate, while Trainium adoption accelerated through multi-year commitments from Anthropic and OpenAI. Amazon also expanded Bedrock with new frontier AI models, including OpenAI's GPT-5.6, and announced a series of new AI infrastructure and enterprise software products.
Outside the cloud segment, the company reported another strong quarter across its retail and advertising businesses. North America sales increased 16%, international sales rose 15%, advertising continued to post robust growth, and Prime delivery speeds reached new records. Amazon also highlighted expanding adoption of Alexa+, Amazon Business, Amazon Pharmacy and its satellite internet initiative.
Guidance Remains Solid
For the third quarter, Amazon expects net sales between $197.0 billion and $202.0 billion, representing 9% to 12% year-over-year growth, while operating income is projected between $22.5 billion and $26.5 billion, well above the prior year's $17.4 billion. Management noted that AI infrastructure investments remain elevated, with capital spending continuing to support long-term growth.
What to Watch
The strong premarket rally reflects investor confidence that Amazon's AI investments are translating into accelerating cloud growth and expanding profitability. Going forward, markets will closely monitor AWS growth, AI monetization, capital spending, retail margins and the company's ability to sustain double-digit revenue growth while maintaining strong earnings momentum.
