Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) Trading 3.5% Higher After Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• Amazon shares jumped 3.5% intraday after Wells Fargo raised its price target to $307, with volume ~53.35M shares (up 7%); analysts' consensus is a Moderate Buy with an average target of $289.21.
• Large AWS deals — including Meta's multiyear deployment of Amazon's Graviton5 cores and an expanded Anthropic relationship reportedly worth about $5 billion — are viewed as multiyear AI-driven revenue tailwinds for AWS.
• Insider selling has been notable: CEO Andrew Jassy sold roughly $7.9M of stock and insiders disposed of 124,186 shares (~$27.8M) over the last quarter, a signal some traders consider a near-term negative.

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)'s stock price traded up 3.5% during mid-day trading on Friday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $305.00 to $307.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Amazon.com traded as high as $264.50 and last traded at $263.99. 53,349,797 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 7% from the average session volume of 49,771,695 shares. The stock had previously closed at $255.08.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on AMZN. Zacks Research lowered Amazon.com from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 1st. Maxim Group boosted their price objective on Amazon.com from $280.00 to $290.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, February 6th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Amazon.com from $310.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Amazon.com from $301.00 to $304.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, New Street Research lowered their price objective on Amazon.com from $285.00 to $280.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifty-four have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $289.21.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP David Zapolsky sold 10,649 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $205.43, for a total value of $2,187,624.07. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 41,190 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,461,661.70. This represents a 20.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Andrew R. Jassy sold 31,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $255.00, for a total value of $7,905,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,207,118 shares in the company, valued at approximately $562,815,090. This trade represents a 1.39% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 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.

Key Amazon.com News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Large, multiyear AWS chip deal — Meta agreed to deploy "tens of millions" of Amazon's Graviton5 cores for agentic AI workloads, a multibillion‑dollar arrangement that materially expands AWS CPU demand and validates Amazon's custom silicon strategy. Meta strikes deal with Amazon's cloud unit to use its CPU chips
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and higher price targets — Multiple firms have raised AMZN targets and reiterated Buy/Outperform ratings in recent sessions, supporting momentum into earnings. Wells Fargo adjusts PT on Amazon.com to 307 from 305; maintains overweight rating
• Positive Sentiment: Deeper Anthropic ties — Amazon’s expanded deal with Anthropic (including a reported $5B commitment) locks in long‑run AWS AI demand and is being framed as a multiyear revenue tailwind for AWS. Amazon and Anthropic Struck a New $5 Billion Deal, but Which Company Gains the Most from Their Partnership?
• Positive Sentiment: Amazon‑backed investments showing upside — X‑Energy, a nuclear firm backed by Amazon, rallied on a strong IPO, signaling that Amazon’s strategic investments are generating value and highlighting its broader infrastructure plays. Amazon-Backed X-Energy Climbs 31% After $1.02 Billion US IPO
• Neutral Sentiment: Q1 earnings catalyst — AMZN reports Q1 on April 29; previews and volatility expectations are keeping traders active — this can amplify moves either way depending on results and capex/EBIT margin commentary. Amazon Reports Earnings on Wednesday—Here's How Much the Stock Is Expected to Move
• Neutral Sentiment: New AWS use‑cases — An AWS‑backed Hollywood production startup is using AI to cut costs and speed production; incremental AWS adoption across media/entertainment is constructive but small vs. headline Graviton deals. How a new Amazon-backed Hollywood production startup deploys AI for speed and cost-cutting
• Neutral Sentiment: Workforce changes and restructuring — Amazon is shifting job titles to "builder" roles and has had layoffs industry‑wide tied to AI; operational impacts are mixed for near‑term costs and morale. Amazon replaces Ring, Blink job titles with ‘builder’ roles
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling — Filings show the CEO sold roughly $7.9M of AMZN stock recently, a signal some traders watch as a near‑term negative. Insider Selling: Amazon.com NASDAQ: AMZN CEO Sells $7,905,000.00 in Stock
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/legal overhang — California AG accused Amazon of using "intimidation" to influence retailer pricing; renewed antitrust scrutiny could be a longer‑term headwind and increase litigation risk/expenses. California Says Amazon Engaged In Illegal Price-Fixing Scheme—Attorney General Says 'Evidence We've Uncovered Is Clear As Day'

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Amazon.com

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of AMZN. Fairway Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Amazon.com by 113.2% in the 3rd quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 113 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Sellwood Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Amazon.com in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. MilWealth Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Amazon.com by 79.0% in the 4th quarter. MilWealth Group LLC now owns 179 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 79 shares during the period. Lifetime Wealth Management P.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Amazon.com in the 4th quarter valued at $45,000. Finally, Elkhorn Partners Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of Amazon.com by 900.0% in the 4th quarter. Elkhorn Partners Limited Partnership now owns 200 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 180 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.20% of the company's stock.

Amazon.com Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market cap of $2.84 trillion, a PE ratio of 36.82, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a fifty day moving average of $217.54 and a 200-day moving average of $225.95.

Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). The firm had revenue of $213.39 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $211.02 billion. Amazon.com had a net margin of 10.83% and a return on equity of 21.87%. Amazon.com's quarterly revenue was up 13.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.86 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Amazon.com, Inc. will post 7.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

About Amazon.com

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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