Amazon Announces Jeff Bezos Departure Amidst Financial Results
SEATTLE, WA - Few announcements shake the wires so vigorously as those revealing a pivotal CEO transition. The team at ANUK nearly lost our bearings yesterday when we learned that Amazon had officially announced that its Founder and CEO Jeff Bezos will be stepping down. The news accompanied Amazon’s fourth quarter financial results and includes an explicit plan for making the transition.
“Amazon is what it is because of invention. We do crazy things together and then make them normal. We pioneered customer reviews, 1-Click, personalized recommendations, Prime’s insanely-fast shipping, Just Walk Out shopping, the Climate Pledge, Kindle, Alexa, marketplace, infrastructure cloud computing, Career Choice, and much more,” said Bezos in the company’s release. “If you do it right, a few years after a surprising invention, the new thing has become normal. People yawn. That yawn is the greatest compliment an inventor can receive. When you look at our financial results, what you’re actually seeing are the long-run cumulative results of invention. Right now, I see Amazon at its most inventive ever, making it an optimal time for this transition.”
The release noted that Bezos will step into his new role as Executive Chair in the third quarter of 2021 as Andy Jassy, who is the current CEO of Amazon Web Services, steps in as the new CEO.
In addition to this industry-shaking news, Amazon reported the following financial results:
- Net sales increased 44 percent to $125.6 billion, compared with $87.4 billion in fourth quarter 2019. Excluding the $1.7 billion favorable impact from year-over-year changes in foreign exchange rates throughout the quarter, net sales increased 42 percent compared with fourth quarter 2019
- Operating income increased to $6.9 billion, compared with operating income of $3.9 billion in fourth quarter 2019
- Net income increased to $7.2 billion, or $14.09 per diluted share, compared with net income of $3.3 billion, or $6.47 per diluted share, in fourth quarter 2019
As we wait to see how this landmark CEO transition unfolds, be sure to keep reading the latest reports from AndNowUKnow.
