Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) Sets New 12-Month High on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Amazon shares reached a new 52-week high after Arete Research raised its price target to $301, with the stock trading as high as $258.79 on volume of about 14.1 million shares.
• Analyst sentiment is a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $289.04 (54 Buys, 4 Holds, 1 Strong Buy), though individual firms have issued mixed target adjustments recently.
• An expanded Anthropic partnership and stronger AI/AWS monetization expectations are boosting revenue visibility, but concerns remain about higher AI-related capex pressuring near-term margins and renewed regulatory/antitrust scrutiny.

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)'s share price hit a new 52-week high on Thursday after Arete Research raised their price target on the stock from $285.00 to $301.00. Arete Research currently has a buy rating on the stock. Amazon.com traded as high as $258.79 and last traded at $257.9720, with a volume of 14134110 shares. The stock had previously closed at $255.36.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Amazon.com in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Raymond James Financial decreased their price target on shares of Amazon.com from $260.00 to $225.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 6th. Monness Crespi & Hardt dropped their price objective on shares of Amazon.com from $300.00 to $280.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Amazon.com from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Amazon.com from $300.00 to $294.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifty-four have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $289.04.

Insider Activity at Amazon.com

In other Amazon.com news, CEO Matthew S. Garman sold 17,751 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $205.22, for a total value of $3,642,860.22. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 9,405 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,930,094.10. This trade represents a 65.37% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Andrew R. Jassy sold 31,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $255.00, for a total transaction of $7,905,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,207,118 shares in the company, valued at $562,815,090. This trade represents a 1.39% decrease in their position. 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 quarter, insiders have sold 124,186 shares of company stock worth $27,826,739. Corporate insiders own 9.70% of the company's stock.

Amazon.com News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Big Anthropic win — Amazon expanded its Anthropic partnership (additional investment commitments and a decade‑long cloud spending pledge from Anthropic), which materially increases long‑term AWS demand, supports Trainium chip adoption and gives revenue visibility for AWS. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street backing — Multiple firms raised price targets or reiterated buy/outperform calls (Sanford Bernstein to $300, Arete to $301, BMO to $315; UBS reaffirmed buy), which gives near‑term momentum into earnings by signaling stronger AWS/AI monetization expectations. Read More. Read More. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Healthcare expansion — Amazon launched a nationwide GLP‑1 weight‑loss program via One Medical + Amazon Pharmacy, creating a new recurring‑revenue path (prescription, care, delivery) and putting competitive pressure on drug pricing/market share for incumbents. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Executive actions — CEO Andy Jassy sold 31,000 shares under a pre‑arranged 10b5‑1 plan; routine filing but worth noting for transparency. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Operational updates — Small logistics / sustainability moves (electric truck deployments, promotions inside AWS) support long‑term efficiency but have limited near‑term revenue impact. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/legal risk — California’s attorney general released filings alleging Amazon pressured vendors to raise prices on rival platforms; renewed antitrust scrutiny could produce fines, remedies or business constraints. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Profitability and valuation concerns — Critics warn the Anthropic/AI spending cycle increases capex and operating intensity and may pressure near‑term margins; some outlets argue the valuation bump from the AI news is overdone. Read More.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Amazon.com

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. American Capital Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Amazon.com by 63.9% in the 3rd quarter. American Capital Advisory LLC now owns 8,081 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock worth $1,774,000 after buying an additional 3,152 shares during the last quarter. Compagnie Lombard Odier SCmA bought a new stake in Amazon.com in the third quarter valued at $451,642,000. Ethos Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in Amazon.com by 9.6% in the 4th quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC now owns 36,485 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock worth $8,421,000 after purchasing an additional 3,196 shares in the last quarter. Baltimore Washington Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Amazon.com by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter. Baltimore Washington Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 239,862 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock worth $52,667,000 after purchasing an additional 4,558 shares during the period. Finally, Culbertson A N & Co. Inc. lifted its position in shares of Amazon.com by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Culbertson A N & Co. Inc. now owns 30,444 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock worth $7,027,000 after purchasing an additional 2,412 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 72.20% of the company's stock.

Amazon.com Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $2.76 trillion, a PE ratio of 35.80, a PEG ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a 50 day moving average of $216.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $225.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.88.

Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 5th. The e-commerce giant reported $1.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.97 by ($0.02). Amazon.com had a return on equity of 21.87% and a net margin of 10.83%.The company had revenue of $213.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $211.02 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.86 EPS. Amazon.com's revenue for the quarter was up 13.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Amazon.com, Inc. will post 7.72 earnings per share for the current year.

Amazon.com Company Profile

Amazon.com, Inc is a diversified technology and retail company best known for its e-commerce marketplace and broad portfolio of consumer and enterprise services. Founded by Jeff Bezos in 1994 and headquartered in Seattle, Washington, the company launched as an online bookseller and expanded into a global retail platform that sells products directly to consumers and provides a marketplace for third-party sellers. Over time Amazon has grown beyond retail into areas including cloud computing, digital media, devices and logistics.

Key businesses and offerings include Amazon's online marketplace and fulfillment services, the Amazon Prime membership program (which bundles expedited shipping with streaming and other benefits), Amazon Web Services (AWS) which supplies on-demand cloud computing and storage to businesses and public-sector customers, and a range of content and advertising services such as Prime Video and Amazon Advertising.

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