Amazon Stock Surges on Strong AWS Revenue and AI Spending

Amazon's (AMZN) stock price rose 3.49% to $265.21 on Friday as the company's AWS revenue surged 37% year-over-year to $42.2 billion in the second quarter.

This growth marks the fastest rate in 18 quarters, with AWS operating income reaching $16.6 billion from $10.2 billion.

Amazon is expanding its AI infrastructure spending, with plans to spend up to $220 billion on capital expenditures in 2026, a figure that was later revised upwards from an initial projection of $200 billion.

The company's heavy investment in AI and chips has pushed free cash flow into negative territory, despite strong operating cash generation of $161.4 billion over the past 12 months.