Becker Business Podcast Summary

Episode: The Amazon Empire Strikes Back 11-1-25
Host: Scott Becker
Release Date: November 1, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, Scott Becker offers a concise yet insightful recap of Amazon’s dramatic comeback after a year spent trailing its tech-industry peers. Becker highlights Amazon’s exceptional Q3 earnings, stock performance, and strategic moves in both retail and cloud services. The episode frames Amazon's performance as a narrative twist among the "Magnificent Seven" tech giants, focusing on how recent results have reinvigorated optimism around the company.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

Amazon’s Year-to-Date Underperformance

• Context (00:10): Compared to other members of the "Magnificent Seven," Amazon underperformed significantly in 2025.

  • “Amazon this entire year has been the laggard of the Magnificent Seven. It's been up 2% year to date, while many other companies been up 30 plus percent year to date.” — Scott Becker [00:13]

• Amazon was seen as shifting toward a “just a retail company and not a cloud company” earlier in the year, raising concerns over its growth prospects.

Q3 Earnings Surprise and Revenue Growth

• Major Rebound (00:30): Amazon's third-quarter performance beat expectations in dramatic fashion.

  • Revenue growth of 13% year-over-year.
  • Actual quarterly revenue: approximately $180 billion.
  • Stock price surged 10-11% in a single day following the earnings release.
  • “Yesterday they struck back. Amazon saw revenue growth go up by 13% year over year and also crushed expectations on the estimates on revenues.” — Scott Becker [00:27]
  • “The stock is up 10, 11% on Friday.” — Scott Becker [00:44]

• Comparison with Walmart (00:38): Amazon’s strong revenues position it to potentially exceed Walmart as the top revenue-generating retailer this year.

Forward Guidance and Q4 Projections

• Looking Ahead (00:59): Amazon projects Q4 revenue will “exceed $200 billion,” a remarkable milestone in the company's history.
  • “They're projecting revenue growth in the fourth quarter to exceed $200 billion, which is just really a remarkable, remarkable number.” — Scott Becker [00:59]

Amazon Web Services (AWS) Acceleration

• Cloud Resurgence (01:13): AWS surpassed growth expectations in the third quarter.

  • “Amazon Web Services had much greater growth this quarter than people had anticipated and they see a future growth in Amazon Web Services.” — Scott Becker [01:13]

• Becker notes AWS’s ongoing importance, having “watched [it] really closely.”

Cost-Cutting and Layoffs

• Strategic Layoffs (01:24): Amazon has recently announced significant layoffs intended to boost efficiency and improve the bottom line.
  • 14,000 layoffs already announced, with as many as 30,000 possible.
  • “Amazon is at the layoff Button recently announcing 14,000 layoffs and maybe up to 30,000 coming, which is intended to really help them on the bottom line as well.” — Scott Becker [01:24]

Amazon’s Comeback and Industry Narrative

• Narrative Shift (01:40): Scott Becker summarizes Amazon’s 2025 performance turnaround, positioning the company as having the best earnings among the “Magnificent Seven.”

  • “So at the end of the day, Amazon bounces back, it strikes back. This is where we're at today. Suddenly it had the best earnings of all the Magnificent Seven in terms of its and after all year being in the seller, it's moved to the top of the line.” — Scott Becker [01:40]

• He congratulates CEO Andy Jassy and the Amazon team for the impressive turnaround.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Amazon this entire year has been the laggard of the Magnificent Seven. It's been up 2% year to date, while many other companies been up 30 plus percent year to date.” — Scott Becker [00:13]
• “Amazon saw revenue growth go up by 13% year over year and also crushed expectations on the estimates on revenues.” — Scott Becker [00:27]
• “They're projecting revenue growth in the fourth quarter to exceed $200 billion, which is just really a remarkable, remarkable number.” — Scott Becker [00:59]
• “Amazon Web Services had much greater growth this quarter than people had anticipated and they see a future growth in Amazon Web Services.” — Scott Becker [01:13]
• “Amazon is at the layoff Button recently announcing 14,000 layoffs and maybe up to 30,000 coming, which is intended to really help them on the bottom line as well.” — Scott Becker [01:24]
• “At the end of the day, Amazon bounces back, it strikes back... Suddenly it had the best earnings of all the Magnificent Seven...it’s moved to the top of the line.” — Scott Becker [01:40]

Important Timestamps

• 00:13: Amazon’s underperformance among the Magnificent Seven
• 00:27: Q3 revenue beat and stock jump
• 00:38: Amazon vs. Walmart in revenue standings
• 00:59: Q4 revenue guidance above $200 billion
• 01:13: AWS outpaces expectations
• 01:24: 14,000-30,000 layoffs announced for efficiency
• 01:40: Summary of Amazon’s comeback and closing remarks

Tone & Delivery

Scott Becker delivers the update with an upbeat, analytical tone, maintaining focus on business metrics and strategic implications. He frames Amazon's Q3 as a narrative of resurgence after a year of skepticism, tying individual performance metrics back to the broader tech industry landscape and the company's competitive standing.