Amazon results: more than 2 billion global units arrived the same or next day in Q1

Amazon.com, Inc. has  announced financial results for its first quarter ended March 31, 2024.

• Net sales increased 13% to $143.3 billion in the first quarter, compared with $127.4 billion in first quarter 2023. Excluding the $0.2 billion unfavorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter, net sales increased 13% compared with first quarter 2023.
  • North America segment sales increased 12% year-over-year to $86.3 billion.
  • International segment sales increased 10% year-over-year to $31.9 billion, or increased 11% excluding changes in foreign exchange rates.
  • AWS segment sales increased 17% year-over-year to $25.0 billion.
• Operating income increased to $15.3 billion in the first quarter, compared with $4.8 billion in first quarter 2023.
  • North America segment operating income was $5.0 billion, compared with operating income of $0.9 billion in first quarter 2023.
  • International segment operating income was $0.9 billion, compared with an operating loss of $1.2 billion in first quarter 2023.
  • AWS segment operating income was $9.4 billion, compared with operating income of $5.1 billion in first quarter 2023.
• Net income increased to $10.4 billion in the first quarter, or $0.98 per diluted share, compared with $3.2 billion, or $0.31 per diluted share, in first quarter 2023.
  • First quarter 2024 net income includes a pre-tax valuation loss of $2.0 billion included in non-operating expense from the common stock investment in Rivian Automotive, Inc., compared to a pre-tax valuation loss of $0.5 billion from the investment in first quarter 2023.
• Operating cash flow increased 82% to $99.1 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with $54.3 billion for the trailing twelve months ended March 31, 2023.
• Free cash flow improved to an inflow of $50.1 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with an outflow of $3.3 billion for the trailing twelve months ended March 31, 2023.
• Free cash flow less principal repayments of finance leases and financing obligations improved to an inflow of $46.1 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with an outflow of $10.1 billion for the trailing twelve months ended March 31, 2023.
• Free cash flow less equipment finance leases and principal repayments of all other finance leases and financing obligations improved to an inflow of $48.8 billion for the trailing twelve months, compared with an outflow of $4.5 billion for the trailing twelve months ended March 31, 2023.

“It was a good start to the year across the business, and you can see that in both our customer experience improvements and financial results,” said Andy Jassy, Amazon President and CEO. “The combination of companies renewing their infrastructure modernization efforts and the appeal of AWS’s AI capabilities is reaccelerating AWS’s growth rate (now at a $100 billion annual revenue run rate); our Stores business continues to expand selection, provide everyday low prices, and accelerate delivery speed (setting another record on speed for Prime customers in Q1) while lowering our cost to serve; and, our Advertising efforts continue to benefit from the growth of our Stores and Prime Video businesses. It’s very early days in all of our businesses and we remain excited by how much more we can make customers’ lives better and easier moving forward.”

With more than 2 billion global units arriving the same or next day in Q1, Amazon delivered to Prime members at its fastest speeds ever. In March, across the top 60 largest U.S. metro areas, nearly 60% of Prime member orders arrived the same or next day, and in London, Tokyo, and Toronto, 3 out of 4 items were delivered the same or next day.

Empowering employees and delivery service partners

In addition to its focus on customers, Amazon strives to make every day better for its employees and delivery service partners. For example, the company:

• Announced that Amazon improved recordable incident rates (any work-related injury that requires more than basic first-aid treatment) by 30% and lost time incident rates (any work-related injury that requires someone to take time away from work) by 60% worldwide over the past four years. In 2024, Amazon plans to invest over $750 million in technologies, resources, training, and programs to further improve safety across its network.
• Expanded opportunities for women in India, including awarding new scholarships for 500 women students to help them build a career in technology as part of the Amazon Future Engineer Scholarship Program. Students will receive 50,000 Indian Rupees each year to go toward courses in computer science.
• Announced that Amazon will introduce its Delivery Service Partner (DSP) program in Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney, Australia this year. The DSP program provides access to tools, resources, and Amazon’s logistics expertise to help entrepreneurs start delivery businesses, and has the potential to create hundreds of jobs for delivery drivers. The program will expand Amazon’s last mile network in Australia to meet growing customer demand.
• Announced plans to open Amazon Robotics fulfillment centers in Asturias, Spain and Sagamihara City, Japan, as part of Amazon’s commitment to design and deploy advanced technology that improves operational safety, employee experience, and customer delivery. The company now has Robotics fulfillment centers in 11 countries around the world, and they help improve workplace ergonomics, reduce heavy lifting and repetitive tasks, and enable employees to gain new skills.