Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) Shares Climb 1.5% – Here’s What Happened

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)’s share price was up 1.5% during mid-day trading on Tuesday. The company traded as high as $272.88 and last traded at $270.87. 38,082,410 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 18% from the average session volume of 46,720,207 shares. The stock had previously closed at $266.93.

Trending Headlines about Amazon.com

Here are the key news stories impacting Amazon.com this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Potential Anthropic investment gains: Amazon is one of Anthropic’s largest investors. A possible IPO at a reported valuation of up to $1.1 trillion could significantly increase the value of Amazon’s stake, although the eventual valuation and proceeds are uncertain. Amazon and Google Will See Big Paydays from Anthropic IPO
• Positive Sentiment: AWS momentum supports the growth outlook: AWS grew 39.3% in the latest quarter, its fastest pace in nearly five years, and has a $578 billion backlog. Investors may see this demand as support for Amazon’s substantial AI and cloud investments. Andy Jassy Just Delivered Great News for Amazon Stock Investors
• Positive Sentiment: New initiatives extend Amazon’s reach: UK aviation approval allows Amazon to expand drone deliveries in Darlington to about 8,000 customers. Ring also unveiled a flying home-security camera and an autonomous security robot, adding potential products and services beyond retail. UK aviation regulator clears Amazon for expanded drone delivery Amazon’s Ring launches flying camera, autonomous security robot
• Neutral Sentiment: Holiday promotions are set: Amazon’s Black Friday Week and Cyber Monday events will run November 19–30. The promotions could support seasonal sales, but discounting may also affect margins. Amazon’s Black Friday Week and Cyber Monday Return November 19-30
• Negative Sentiment: Spending and legal costs temper the outlook: Amazon’s large AI infrastructure spending plan could pressure cash flow before returns materialize. Separately, the company agreed to pay $3 million to Arizona Prime members to resolve allegations about its cancellation process. Amazon agrees to pay $3M to Arizona Prime members

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on AMZN shares. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $320.00 price objective on shares of Amazon.com in a research note on Friday, October 30th. HSBC reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $310.00 target price on shares of Amazon.com in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Rosenblatt Securities reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $360.00 price target on shares of Amazon.com in a report on Friday, October 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $330.00 price target on shares of Amazon.com in a research report on Friday, October 30th. Finally, Citizens Jmp reduced their price target on shares of Amazon.com from $315.00 to $275.00 and set a “market outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifty-five have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Amazon.com has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $321.74.

Amazon.com Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a current ratio of 0.99. The stock has a market cap of $2.93 trillion, a PE ratio of 21.90, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 1.49. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $253.97 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $243.74.

Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The e-commerce giant reported $1.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.97 by ($0.08). Amazon.com had a net margin of 16.90% and a return on equity of 15.72%. The firm had revenue of $201.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $202.22 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.95 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Amazon.com, Inc. will post 7.80 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Amazon.com

In other Amazon.com news, CEO Andrew Jassy sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $259.01, for a total transaction of $5,180,200.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,235,766 shares in the company, valued at $579,085,751.66. This trade represents a 0.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Matthew S. Garman sold 14,541 shares of Amazon.com stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.06, for a total transaction of $3,766,991.46. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 17,794 shares in the company, valued at $4,609,713.64. This trade represents a 44.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders sold 71,589 shares of company stock valued at $18,545,595. 8.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of AMZN. Trust Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Amazon.com by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 107,563 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 3,414 shares in the last quarter. TOP Private Wealth LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Amazon.com in the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. Bard Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Amazon.com in the 2nd quarter valued at about $32,000. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Amazon.com in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Atomic Invest LLC lifted its position in shares of Amazon.com by 41.2% in the 2nd quarter. Atomic Invest LLC now owns 168 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 49 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.20% of the company’s stock.

Amazon.com Company Profile

Amazon.com, Inc. is a technology and e-commerce company founded by Jeff Bezos in 1994 as an online bookstore. It has since grown into a global business serving consumers, sellers, developers, enterprises and content creators. Amazon operates online stores and marketplaces, where it sells products directly and enables third-party sellers to reach customers. Its other businesses include Amazon Web Services, which provides cloud computing and related services; digital advertising; Prime memberships; and entertainment offerings such as streaming video and music.