KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 5 (Bernama) -- Bursa Malaysia closed lower on Friday amid mixed regional market performance as investors turned cautious over a possible rate hike by the Bank of Japan (BOJ) and upcoming US economic data that may influence the Federal Reserve’s (Fed) interest rate decision next week. At 5 pm, the FTSE Bursa Malaysia KLCI (FBM KLCI) pared most earlier losses to settle 4.55 points easier, or 0.28 per cent, to 1,616.52 from Thursday’s close of 1,621.07. The benchmark index, which opened 0.37 of-a-point lower at 1,620.70, moved between 1,609.67 and 1,621.25 throughout the day. The broader market was negative, with decliners outpacing advancers 604 to 439. A total of 550 counters were unchanged, 1,151 untraded, and 18 suspended. Turnover declined to 3.17 billion units worth RM2.24 billion from 4.48 billion units worth RM2.75 billion yesterday. Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd vice-presiden...
Amazon (AMZN.US) will release its Q3 FY2025 earnings after the market closes on October 30, with investors watching closely to see if the company’s cloud division (AWS) can recover momentum amid slowing growth and rising capital expenditures.
Financial Expectations
Revenue: Estimated at $177.72 billion, up 11.9% YoY.
EPS: Expected at $1.56, up 9.13% YoY.
Operating Profit: Forecast at $19.7 billion, within the company’s guidance of $15.5–20.5 billion.
Amazon guided for Q3 revenue between $174–179.5 billion, implying YoY growth of 9.5–13%, signaling a moderate slowdown compared with Q2’s momentum.
1. Global Retail Growth
Amazon’s retail segment continues to benefit from the structural shift to e-commerce. Within this business, advertising and Prime memberships are key profit drivers.
Advertising has consistently grown faster than Google’s and Meta’s ad divisions, thanks to its low cost base and integration with Amazon’s retail ecosystem.
Investors expect another strong quarter for ad revenue, as higher ad loads and new AI-driven targeting tools lift margins.
2. AWS: The Core Question
AWS remains under scrutiny as growth continues to lag peers.
Q2 AWS revenue rose 17.5% YoY, below the 20% mark.
Operating margin slipped to 32.9%, down from 39.5% in Q1.
Remaining performance obligations (RPO) reached $195 billion, up just 3.2% QoQ, signaling slowing deal momentum.
Analysts see capacity constraints as a near-term bottleneck, but AI-driven demand could reignite growth once new infrastructure comes online.
Still, AWS’s competitive edge in the AI era is in question as Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud gain share.
Amazon says Blackwell-based cloud instances began rolling out in June 2025, with B200 chip pricing expected to lift AWS revenue in coming quarters.
3. Capital Expenditures and Cash Flow
Amazon’s Capex surged 83% YoY in Q2 to $32.2 billion, marking a new record as the company accelerates AI data center buildouts and Project Kuiper (its LEO satellite network).
This has driven depreciation costs to more than 9% of revenue, a historical high. Analysts caution that rising Capex could weigh on free cash flow in the near term, though management insists investments will yield long-term AI and logistics advantages.
4. Option Market Signals
Options traders are leaning bullish, but expect volatility:
Put/Call Ratio: 0.69 — below average, showing bullish positioning.
Implied Volatility: 42.23% — elevated, suggesting expectations of a sharp post-earnings move.
Average Post-Earnings Move (12 quarters): ±5.99%.
Valuation & Key Risks
P/E Ratio: 34.6×, placing it in the 44th percentile of its five-year range — reasonable, but not cheap.
Potential Upside: Recovery in digital advertising and continued e-commerce growth.
Risks: Cloud market competition, macroeconomic headwinds, and regulatory scrutiny over antitrust concerns.
Bottom Line
Amazon’s Q3 results are likely to deliver steady retail and advertising growth, but AWS performance remains the swing factor. A renewed slowdown in cloud margins or growth could spook investors, especially after recent rallies in tech stocks.
The market will focus on whether AWS’s AI investments and new hardware rollouts are enough to restore confidence that Amazon can sustain leadership in the next wave of cloud computing.
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