SEATTLE - Internet retailer Amazon.com posted its first quarterly net profit ever in the fourth quarter, beating its own forecasts and Wall Street's expectations.
For the quarter ended Dec. 31, the Seattle company said Tuesday it earned $5 million, or 1 cent a share, compared with a net loss of $545 million, or $1.53 per share, in the year-ago period.
The company also recorded a pro forma net profit, which excludes certain costs such as losses from investments, of $35 million, or 9 cents per share, compared with a loss of $90 million, or 25 cents per share, in the year-ago period.
Analysts polled by Thomson Financial/First Call were predicting a pro forma net loss of 7 cents per share.
A year ago, Amazon executives said the company would aim to turn a pro forma operating profit, which excludes many expenses, by the end of 2001. The company said it had a pro forma operating profit of $59 million, compared with a loss of $60 million in the fourth quarter of last year.
The results were on net sales of $1.12 billion, a 15 percent increase over sales of $972 million in the fourth quarter of 2000, showing the company had healthy sales in the all-important holiday quarter despite what was for many retailers a lackluster season.
For the fiscal year ended Dec. 31, the company recorded a net loss of $567.2 million, or $1.56 per share, compared with a net loss of $1.41 billion, or $4.02 per share, in 2000.
Net sales were $3.12 billion, compared with net sales of $2.76 billion in fiscal 2000.
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