sche Bank analyst, Ross Sandler, in a note to clients. “Few mega cap consumer internet companies can sustainably demonstrate accelerating revenue and margin expansion at the same time, and when it happens, it’s a magical trend that rightfully gets rewarded.” Amazon’s shares have doubled since hitting lows last October on pessimism over its profit outlook, and Friday’s surge put its market capitalisation at more than $US250 billion, overtaking the brick-and-mortar retail leader Wal-Mart. The US e-commerce giant, which is also a major player in online video and cloud computing, on Thursday reported a net profit of $US92 million while revenues jumped 20 per cent from a year ago to $US23.18 billion. The company founded by Jeff Bezos 20 years ago has been known for investing in long term projects with little concern for short-term profits, but some of those investments appear to be paying off. “We believe that Amazon is now starting to move away from the heavy build years for its e-commerce business just as its top line accelerates, yielding the beginnings of the much sought-after margin leverage,” said a note from Cantor Fitzgerald’s Youssef Squali. AFP