Amazon.com, Inc. $AMZN Shares Bought by Essex Financial Services Inc.

Key Points

• Essex Financial Services increased its Amazon stake by 2.3% in the first quarter, bringing its holdings to 112,006 shares worth about $23.3 million.
• Amazon continues to draw attention for its AI and data-center spending, including a $25 billion bond sale to support infrastructure buildout, though some investors are worried about heavy capex and rising debt.
• The company’s latest earnings beat expectations, with $2.78 EPS on $181.5 billion in revenue, and Wall Street remains bullish with a Moderate Buy rating and an average price target of $312.79.

Essex Financial Services Inc. grew its position in Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) by 2.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 112,006 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock after acquiring an additional 2,526 shares during the period. Amazon.com comprises 1.3% of Essex Financial Services Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 13th largest holding. Essex Financial Services Inc.'s holdings in Amazon.com were worth $23,328,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Narwhal Capital Management raised its position in Amazon.com by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Narwhal Capital Management now owns 216,606 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock worth $49,997,000 after acquiring an additional 4,854 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its holdings in Amazon.com by 21.0% during the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 24,653,228 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock valued at $5,690,463,000 after buying an additional 4,275,942 shares during the last quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC increased its position in Amazon.com by 13.6% during the fourth quarter. Weaver Capital Management LLC now owns 39,264 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock worth $9,063,000 after buying an additional 4,713 shares in the last quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Amazon.com by 9.6% in the fourth quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC now owns 36,485 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock worth $8,421,000 after acquiring an additional 3,196 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Culbertson A N & Co. Inc. lifted its position in shares of Amazon.com by 8.6% in the fourth quarter. Culbertson A N & Co. Inc. now owns 30,444 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock valued at $7,027,000 after acquiring an additional 2,412 shares in the last quarter. 72.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Amazon.com News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Several reports highlighted Amazon’s expanding AI/data-center buildout, including plans to increase capacity and a $25 billion bond sale to fund infrastructure, which bulls see as supporting long-term AWS growth. Amazon’s New Debt Deal Puts Its AI Spending Story on Trial
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst coverage remained constructive, with BNP Paribas keeping an Outperform rating and a $345 target, while BofA raised its price target and cited improving sell-through trends for Amazon’s retail business. Amazon's Valuation Looks Attractive Ahead of Earnings: Analyst
• Positive Sentiment: Articles also framed Amazon as a leading AI winner, noting that hyperscaler spending may be “pre-sold” through future demand and that Amazon’s valuation remains attractive relative to peers. Nervous About AI Spending? Buy the Stocks of These 3 Tech Giants.
• Neutral Sentiment: One story said Amazon is cheaper than Walmart and Costco on a key valuation metric, but the explanation was more about business mix than a clear near-term catalyst. Why Is Amazon so Much Cheaper Than Walmart and Costco? This Is the Only Answer I Can Think of.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain wary of Amazon’s heavy capex and rising debt needs, with some coverage warning that free cash flow has been squeezed as the company funds its AI expansion. Huge News for Amazon Stock Investors!
• Negative Sentiment: There were also headlines about Third Point trimming its Amazon stake and commentary about insider selling, which can add to short-term caution. Billionaire Investor Retreats From Retail, Exits Alibaba Entirely, Cuts Amazon Stake 10%

Insider Activity at Amazon.com

In other news, SVP David Zapolsky sold 9,270 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $268.53, for a total value of $2,489,273.10. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 41,190 shares in the company, valued at $11,060,750.70. This trade represents a 18.37% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Matthew S. Garman sold 15,467 shares of Amazon.com stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.40, for a total value of $4,074,007.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 14,159 shares in the company, valued at $3,729,480.60. This represents a 52.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 195,774 shares of company stock valued at $51,643,704 over the last three months. Insiders own 8.90% of the company's stock.

Amazon.com Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of AMZN traded down $1.70 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $245.34. The company had a trading volume of 31,617,563 shares, compared to its average volume of 58,414,680. Amazon.com, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $196.00 and a fifty-two week high of $278.56. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $253.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $235.31. The stock has a market cap of $2.64 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.83 and a beta of 1.46. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The e-commerce giant reported $2.78 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.63 by $1.15. Amazon.com had a return on equity of 19.92% and a net margin of 12.22%.The business had revenue of $181.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $177.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.59 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 16.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Amazon.com, Inc. will post 7.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Evercore lifted their price objective on Amazon.com from $285.00 to $315.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Rosenblatt Securities raised their price target on shares of Amazon.com from $296.00 to $332.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. TD Securities upgraded shares of Amazon.com to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Amazon.com in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Moffett Nathanson raised their target price on shares of Amazon.com from $283.00 to $288.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Fifty-seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Amazon.com currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $312.79.

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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