Amazon is scheduled to report fourth-quarter results after the market close on Thursday, with analysts polled by LSEG projecting adjusted earnings of $1.97 per share on approximately $211.3 billion in revenue. Investors will zero in on Amazon Web Services, which expanded 20.2 percent year-over-year in Q3, as StreetAccount forecasts about $34.9 billion in AWS revenue for the period, implying roughly 21.4 percent growth. Advertising revenue is seen contributing around $21.2 billion. Beyond top-line metrics, market participants will be watching commentary on capital expenditures—Amazon flagged a run rate toward $125 billion in 2025 CapEx—and any updates on its AI spending trajectory. The company has indicated that AI initiatives will drive higher infrastructure outlays, even as it seeks efficiencies elsewhere.

In its January announcement, Amazon revealed plans to cut approximately 16,000 corporate roles following the 14,000 positions eliminated last October, marking a broad effort to trim bureaucracy and accelerate decision-making. CEO Andy Jassy has characterized the reductions as a move to help Amazon operate like “the world’s largest startup.” Investors will be listening for guidance on the savings realized from these cuts and how they offset higher AI and data-center expenses. With the corporate headcount reductions coinciding with elevated capital spending, any detailed cost-savings breakdown could sway market sentiment on Amazon’s ability to balance investment in growth areas against disciplined expense management.

Germany’s Federal Cartel Office has ordered Amazon to cease its non-transparent price-filtering practices on third-party marketplace listings and to return roughly 59 million euros in allegedly unfair gains. The decision, which Amazon plans to appeal, centers on mechanisms that capped retail prices for marketplace sellers, a practice deemed impermissible under EU competition rules except in cases of excessive pricing. The ruling underscores regulatory risk in Amazon’s largest European market—where the company controls about 60 percent of e-commerce—and may prompt increased scrutiny of marketplace policies elsewhere.