According to a First Call survey of investment bank analysts, the consensus on Wall Street was that Amazon would lose 33 cents a share.
Early indications are that investors liked what they heard.
Shares of Amazon were up 11 percent in after-hours trading. The reaction offered a sharp contrast to Amazon's last earnings report, when its stock dipped 17 percent the day after the announcement and the company got downgraded by a raft of Wall Street analysts. In addition to talking about the most recent quarter, Bezos laid out optimistic goals for the ever-crucial holiday shopping season. This will be Amazon's sixth holiday selling season, Bezos said, making the company one of the most experienced e-tailers on the block. Amazon executives are also hoping this will be good holiday year for the company to expand outside its traditional books and music business.