, July 21, 2026

AMAZON COM INC (AMZN) — Fundamental Analysis


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Amazon.com Inc (AMZN) — Fundamental Analysis

Snapshot & Big Picture

Amazon is one of the world's largest companies by revenue, operating across e-commerce, cloud computing (AWS), digital advertising, logistics, and an expanding constellation of adjacent businesses. Over the past several years the company has undergone a visible financial transformation: from a low-margin, growth-at-all-costs retailer into a meaningfully profitable enterprise with a diversifying revenue base. The annual data from SEC 10-K filings tells that story clearly — revenue has grown from roughly $280 billion in 2019 to nearly $717 billion in fiscal year 2025, while operating margins have climbed from mid-single digits to above 11%. The most recent quarterly filing (Q1 2026) suggests that momentum has not faded.

Latest Quarter Snapshot (Q1 2026 — Most Current Data)

The figures below come from Amazon's 10-Q filed April 30, 2026, covering the quarter ended March 31, 2026. This is more current than the annual figures and reflects the company's most recent reported financial position.

Metric Q1 2026 (Quarter Ended Mar 31, 2026)
Revenue $181.5 billion
EBITDA $42.8 billion
Gross Margin ~0.7% (as reported in filing)
Operating Margin 13.1%
Net Margin 16.7%
Current Ratio 1.18x
Debt-to-Equity 0.28x

A 13.1% operating margin and a 16.7% net margin in a single quarter are notable figures for a company of this scale and business mix. The net margin benefit likely includes investment gains or tax items beyond core operations — the net margin running above operating margin reflects below-the-line income. The current ratio of 1.18x is healthy, and the debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28x reflects a balance sheet that has continued to de-lever from the 2022 peak. On a single-quarter annualized basis, revenue would approach roughly $726 billion, consistent with continued top-line expansion.

Note: The gross margin figure of ~0.7% reported in the Q1 2026 10-Q filing appears unusually low relative to the business mix and may reflect a specific accounting classification or cost presentation within that filing period. Gross margin data was not available (null) in the annual 10-K filings reviewed.

Profitability — Multi-Year Trend

Amazon's profitability story over the past six fiscal years has been one of pressure, recovery, and expansion. The 2022 fiscal year was the nadir — a net loss (net margin of -0.5%) driven by cost inflation, over-investment in logistics capacity, and macroeconomic headwinds. Since then, disciplined cost management and the continued scaling of high-margin businesses like AWS and advertising have driven a sharp rebound.

Fiscal Year Revenue EBITDA Operating Margin Net Margin
2020 $386.1B $48.1B 5.9% 5.5%
2021 $469.8B $59.3B 5.3% 7.1%
2022 $514.0B $54.2B 2.4% -0.5%
2023 $574.8B $85.5B 6.4% 5.3%
2024 $638.0B $121.4B 10.8% 9.3%
2025 $716.9B $145.7B 11.2% 10.8%

The trajectory from 2022 to 2025 is striking: EBITDA nearly tripled, operating margin expanded roughly 880 basis points, and net margin swung from negative territory to nearly 11%. The 2025 full-year figures represent the strongest profitability Amazon has reported across this data set, and the Q1 2026 quarter shows margins expanding further still.

Financial Health

Amazon's balance sheet has strengthened considerably over the review period. Debt-to-equity peaked at 0.48x in 2022 — the same year operating margins cratered — and has since declined steadily to 0.17x at fiscal year-end 2025, and further to 0.28x in the most recent quarter (a slight uptick, potentially reflecting capital deployment). The current ratio has remained near or above 1.0x throughout, indicating that short-term obligations are covered by current assets, though the company operates with lean working capital given its scale.

Fiscal Year Current Ratio Debt-to-Equity
2020 1.05x 0.35x
2021 1.14x 0.36x
2022 0.94x 0.48x
2023 1.05x 0.33x
2024 1.06x 0.20x
2025 1.05x 0.17x
Q1 2026 (Mar 31) 1.18x 0.28x

The overall direction is clear: Amazon is carrying less relative debt and maintaining adequate liquidity. A current ratio comfortably above 1.0x in Q1 2026 is the highest level seen in this data set, suggesting improving near-term financial flexibility.

Growth

Amazon's revenue growth across multiple time horizons reflects both the sheer scale of the business and its consistent ability to expand. The table below uses pre-calculated CAGR figures spanning the stated fiscal year windows.

Window Start Period End Period Start Revenue End Revenue Revenue CAGR
3-Year FY 2022 (Dec 31, 2022) FY 2025 (Dec 31, 2025) $514.0B $716.9B 11.7%
5-Year FY 2020 (Dec 31, 2020) FY 2025 (Dec 31, 2025) $386.1B $716.9B 13.2%
10-Year FY Sept 30, 2019 (trailing quarter) FY 2025 (Dec 31, 2025) $69.98B $716.9B 26.2%

The 10-year CAGR of 26.2% should be interpreted with context: the start point (September 30, 2019) is a single trailing quarter's revenue figure of roughly $70 billion, not a full annual revenue figure, which mechanically inflates the growth rate relative to a full-year base. The 3-year and 5-year CAGRs of 11.7% and 13.2%, respectively, are more directly comparable and both reflect robust growth for a company already generating hundreds of billions in annual revenue. Sustaining double-digit top-line growth at this scale is uncommon and underscores the breadth of Amazon's addressable markets.

Plain English Summary

Amazon has spent the last few years proving that it can be both a growth company and a profitable one. After a difficult 2022 — when costs ballooned, margins evaporated, and the company posted a net loss — management executed a significant operational turnaround. By 2025, Amazon was generating nearly $717 billion in annual revenue with operating margins above 11% and EBITDA of $145 billion, figures that would have seemed improbable at the depths of 2022. The Q1 2026 quarter, the most recent data available, shows margins expanding even further, with operating margin at 13.1% and net margin at 16.7%. The balance sheet has de-levered steadily, with debt-to-equity falling from 0.48x in 2022 to 0.17x by end of 2025. Revenue growth in the 11–13% range annually (across the 3- and 5-year windows) is exceptional for a company of this size. In plain terms: Amazon has gotten much better at turning its enormous revenue base into actual profit, it carries a manageable debt load, and it continues to grow at a pace well above most companies of comparable scale. The key variables to watch going forward are whether high-margin segments like cloud and advertising continue to scale, whether capital expenditure on AI infrastructure remains disciplined, and whether the margin expansion seen since 2022 can be sustained or extended.

Source Filings

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