Cash is now the AI scorecard, not spending. QQQ fell 1.42% and S&P 500 0.30% Thursday because investors are punishing cash burn: Amazon missed with $201.9B revenue and $1.89 EPS, and despite AWS growing 39% to $48.1B, its TTM free cash flow dropped 35% to $42.2B, causing another 7.30% drop in after hours trading after the close; Microsoft slipped only 0.16% because its AI capex is more clearly monetized via Azure and Copilot subscriptions; Meta gained 1.96% because it uses AI to boost ad returns without heavy cloud capex. For me, Meta will prove cash returns first in the short-term, Microsoft has the best mid-term path to turn AI spend into recurring cash, while Amazon has the hardest job proving its massive capex cycle actually expands margins.
Disclaimer: Investing carries risk. This is not financial advice. The above content should not be regarded as an offer, recommendation, or solicitation on acquiring or disposing of any financial products, any associated discussions, comments, or posts by author or other users should not be considered as such either. It is solely for general information purpose only, which does not consider your own investment objectives, financial situations or needs. TTM assumes no responsibility or warranty for the accuracy and completeness of the information, investors should do their own research and may seek professional advice before investing.
