Amazon misses Q4 estimates

Amazon.com, the world’s largest internet retailer, missed analysts’ fourth- quarter revenue estimates and reported a 57% decline in profit, dragged down by shipping costs and the money-losing Kindle Fire.

Net income fell to $177 million (€135m), or 38 cents a share, from $416m, or 91c, a year earlier, the Seattle-based company said last night. Analysts had projected 16c. Sales rose 35% to $17.4 billion, compared with an estimate of $18.3bn.

Chief executive Jeff Bezos is squeezing profit margins in search of growth, looking to add customers by pushing free shipping and offering its Kindle devices at cut-rate prices. That has conditioned investors to expect strong sales increases, making the latest results disappointing, said Colin Gillis, an analyst at BGC Partners LP in New York.