3 Things To Look Out For In Amazon's Earnings Report

Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN is among the world's highest-grossing online retailers, with $281 billion in net sales and roughly $365 billion in estimated physical/digital gross merchandise volume in 2019.

The company has been a beneficiary during the COVID-19 pandemic as consumers flock to online means of getting their shopping done.

Amazon reports second-quarter earnings results on Thursday after the close. The EPS and sales numbers are always important, with consensus estimates of $1.46 and $81.53 billion, respectively, but each company has its own specific projects and updates to look out for.

Here are three things to look out for in Amazon’s earnings report.

E-commerce Numbers: As people began spending more time at home, shopping on Amazon became increasingly convenient.

“The company saw a spike in demand for groceries and other household essentials during Q1 as a result of store closures and shelter-in-place restrictions, and we anticipate that this trend persisted into Q2, with other categories such as sporting goods and furniture also seeing an uptick in demand with people spending more time at home,” Maria Ripps of Canaccord Genuity wrote in a note issued on July 26.

Fulfillment Center Impact: With a spike in demand comes an increased strain on operations. Amazon stopped its one-day shipping in certain areas in order to focus on delivering pandemic-related needs on a timely basis.

“We expect Amazon will provide an update on how its fulfillment centers have handled the surge in demand along with progress on the company’s one-day shipping initiative and potentially even updated plans for its annual Prime Day sale,” said Ripps.

AWS Update: Amazon Web Services (AWS) is a major revenue driver for the company. Be on the lookout for coronavirus-related impact, good or bad.