SEATTLE — Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN) announced financial results for its third quarter ending Sept. 30, posting sales of $96.1 billion, an increase of 37 percent compared with third-quarter 2019.
The sales numbers exceeded even the Seattle-based e-commerce giant’s optimistic prediction of $87 billion to $93 billion in sales. Operating income nearly doubled, rising from $3.2 billion to $6.2 billion between the second and third quarter.
As the COVID-19 pandemic has raged on, Amazon has reaped benefits as consumers switch from in-person to online shopping. However, that comes with a variety of increased costs as well. In the company’s guidance for the fourth quarter of 2020, it expects to incur $4 billion in COVID-related costs, such as personal protective equipment, enhanced cleaning and increased wages.
As a result of the increased costs, Amazon stock actually dropped following the news, falling from $3,248.86 per share at 2:30 p.m. Thursday to $3,094.10 at 9:45 a.m. Friday. On a long-term basis, though, this is a modest fall. The stock price closed at $1,779.99 on Oct. 30, 2019.