Can't win 'em all

Buttressed by sales in the US and overseas, Amazon's 1Q08 sales reportedly rose 37 percent.

Earnings for the quarter approached $143 million — 34 cents a share — from $111 million — 26 cents a share — in 1Q07, beating Wall Street expectations of a 32-cent-per-share profit.

Revenue hit $4.14 billion from $3.02 billion during the same period last year. Sales in North America alone were up 31 percent, to $2.13 billion, from 2007. And international sales were up 44 percent to $2.01 billion — accounting for 49 percent of all revenue.

Despite solid figures, the success of the Kindle and the popularity of Amazon's MP3 store, analyst Tim Boyd of American Technology Research admonished investors to remain cautious, reports the Associated Press.

US-based sales growth in books, CDs, electronics and other "media" items have slowed compared to 4Q07. International sales growth has also slowed. These factors — among others — dragged Amazon shares down 5.2 percent, to $76.75 after hours last night, despite its frothy revenue report.

Amazon expects sales of between $3.86-$4.08 billion for Q2. Analysts expect a conservative $3.84 billion. For the year, Amazon forecasts $19.1-$20 billion, versus analysts' $19.29 billion.