10/24 16:17
Amazon.com Third-quarter Sales Up 79%
Year-Over-Year;
Electronics Store Becomes Second-Largest Business At Amazon.com,
Surpassing Music
Business Editors
SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 24, 2000--
US Books, Music and DVD/Video Segment Achieves 6% Pro Forma Operating
Margin; Cash and Marketable Securities of $900 Million
Amazon.com, Inc. (Nasdaq:AMZN) today announced net sales for the third quarter
of 2000 were $638 million, an increase of 79% over net sales of $356 million for the
third quarter of 1999. For the first time, the Electronics store has grown to become
the second-largest U.S. store, behind Books and ahead of Music. Gross margin for
the third quarter of 2000 was 26%, up from 20% for the third quarter of 1999.
Pro forma operating loss for the third quarter of 2000 was $68 million, or 11% of
sales, compared to a pro forma operating loss of $79 million, or 22% of sales, in
the third quarter of 1999. Third-quarter pro forma net loss was $0.25 per share, an
improvement over the pro forma net loss of $0.26 per share in the third quarter of
1999.
Amazon.com's U.S. Books, Music and DVD/Video segment's fully allocated
third-quarter pro forma operating profit was $25 million, or 6% of sales, up from 0%
in the same period a year ago.
"The strong growth in electronics is due to great prices and deep selection
combined with our widely recognized customer service. In September, 6 of the 10
top-selling items on Amazon.com were from our electronics store," said Jeff
Bezos, Amazon.com chief executive officer."As always, we're grateful to
customers for continuing to choose Amazon.com."
"This was a strong quarter for Amazon.com; we are driving toward profitability, and
we surpassed our key internal operational and financial objectives," said Warren
Jenson, Amazon.com chief financial officer."As we enter our sixth holiday season,
we are better prepared operationally than ever to deliver for customers, while at the
same time we expect to improve our operating margin for the fourth consecutive
quarter."
Amazon.com worldwide cumulative customer accounts increased by over 2.8
million during the quarter to over 25 million as of September 30, 2000. Sales per
active customer for the twelve months ended September 30, 2000, were $130, up
from $108 for the same period a year ago. As part of its agreement with
Amazon.com, Toysrus.com purchased at cost approximately $20 million of
toys-related inventory, which is included in third-quarter sales.
Amazon International sales, which comprise the Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.de, and
Amazon.fr businesses, were $88 million, up 121% from $40 million for the third
quarter of 1999. Amazon International added approximately 800,000 new customer
accounts in the third quarter of 2000, bringing cumulative Amazon International
customer accounts to approximately 3.9 million, an increase of 225% from
approximately 1.2 million as of September 30, 1999.
Operating cash usage in the third quarter was $4 million, compared to $76 million
in the third quarter of 1999.
Third-quarter GAAP net loss was $0.68 per share, compared to a net loss of $0.59
per share in the third quarter of 1999.
Recent Highlights
Global Expansion
-- Amazon.com launched Amazon.fr, a French-language site offering
books, music CDs, DVDs and videos dedicated to customers in
France and to French-speaking customers around the world.
Amazon.fr was named the best overall online retailer by
leading French publications Capital, Le Monde and Journal du
Net.
-- Amazon.de launched a Software store.
Expanded Selection and Partnerships
-- Amazon.com, in connection with a strategic alliance with
Toysrus.com, launched a co-branded toy store. The new online
store combined the strengths of the two e-tailers' prior
stores, to bring customers the best toy-buying experience
available online.
-- Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ:MSFT) announced its Microsoft Reader
had been selected by Amazon.com as the preferred format for
Amazon.com's forthcoming e-Books store.
-- Amazon.com launched a Camera & Photo store, offering digital
and film cameras, optical gear, and accessories, and announced
an alliance with Ofoto, Inc., a premier online photography
service.
-- Apple (Nasdaq:AAPL) announced it had licensed Amazon.com's
1-Click patent and trademark for use in its Apple Online
Store, as part of an e-commerce patent cross-licensing
agreement.
-- Amazon.com launched a Computer & Video Games store, offering
the largest selection of computer and video games and
accessories available, online or off-, to provide a one-stop
gaming destination for both casual and hard-core gaming
enthusiasts.
-- Amazon.com launched a new-car buying service, providing
customers with a superior car-buying experience backed by
service and support from an expansive network of premier auto
dealers affiliated with its partner Greenlight.com.
Platform Growth
-- Amazon.com announced the availability of Mobile Auctions, a
wireless service that provides customers the ability to search
for new auction items, enter and monitor bids, and track
sales, and offers mobile alerts for Amazon Auctions directly
from a mobile phone.
-- Enrollment in the Amazon.com Associates Program surpassed
500,000 members, reinforcing its position as the largest and
most popular program of its kind.
Business Outlook
The following forward looking-statements reflect Amazon.com's expectations as of
October 24, 2000. Given the emerging nature of online retail, potential changes in
general economic conditions, and the various other risk factors discussed below,
actual results may differ materially. The company intends to continue its practice of
not updating forward-looking statements until its next quarterly results
announcement, other than in publicly available statements.
Fourth Quarter 2000 Expectations
-- Sales are expected to be between $950 million and $1.05
billion.
-- Gross margin is expected to be seasonally down compared to the
third quarter of this year, although up strongly over the
fourth quarter of 1999.
-- Pro forma operating losses are expected to be between 5% and
8% of sales.
-- Cash and marketable securities at year-end are expected to be
over $1 billion.
2001 Expectations
-- Sales are expected to be approximately $4 billion.
-- Pro forma loss from operations is expected to narrow to less
than 5% of sales, perhaps substantially so.
-- Cash and marketable securities as of March 31, 2001, are
expected to be approximately $700 million, and the company
expects to generate significant positive cash flow from
operations for the nine months ended December 31, 2001.
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