Amazon.com, Inc. $AMZN Stock: ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. Increases Holdings

Key Points

• ZWJ Investment Counsel increased its Amazon stake by 1,793.9% in the third quarter, acquiring 532,878 additional shares for a total of 562,583 shares valued at approximately $140.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own 72.2% of Amazon’s stock.
• Analyst sentiment remains positive, with 57 Buy ratings and three Holds, producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $322.53.
• Amazon shares opened at $250.38, down 4.6%, despite strong recent results that exceeded earnings and revenue estimates. Investors remain focused on AWS and AI growth, margins, free cash flow and the returns from Amazon’s substantial infrastructure spending.

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN - Free Report) by 1,793.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 562,583 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock after buying an additional 532,878 shares during the period. Amazon.com makes up approximately 3.9% of ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Amazon.com were worth $140,168,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Silvant Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Amazon.com during the second quarter worth about $60,065,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in Amazon.com in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $909,868,000. Northstar Financial Companies Inc. bought a new stake in Amazon.com in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $3,376,000. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC lifted its stake in Amazon.com by 7.5% in the 1st quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 73,085 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock valued at $15,221,000 after acquiring an additional 5,125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. boosted its position in Amazon.com by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 303,862 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock worth $63,285,000 after acquiring an additional 5,104 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 72.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on AMZN shares. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $385.00 price target (up from $315.00) on shares of Amazon.com in a research note on Tuesday, October 6th. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $320.00 price objective (up from $315.00) on shares of Amazon.com in a research report on Friday, July 31st. UBS Group set a $200.00 price objective on shares of Amazon.com in a research report on Thursday, September 17th. Mizuho set a $330.00 target price on shares of Amazon.com and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Susquehanna reaffirmed a "positive" rating on shares of Amazon.com in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Fifty-seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $322.53.

More Amazon.com News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Strong AWS and AI growth remain the central bull case. AWS is reportedly expanding at its fastest pace in 18 quarters, while Amazon’s custom Trainium chips are being made available to PyTorch developers. Analysts see cloud growth, advertising, operating leverage and AI infrastructure as potential drivers of substantial long-term upside. Amazon AI growth and upside analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Institutional and analyst support provided a counterpoint. Morgan Stanley named Amazon a top pick and raised its price target, while Citadel increased its Amazon position. Jefferies also said warehouse automation and Amazon’s logistics network could improve retail margins over time. Citadel Amazon stake and AI bubble article
• Positive Sentiment: Amazon continues to expand strategic growth opportunities. The company is involved in a proposed 960-megawatt nuclear project in Indiana, and data indicate it is gaining fresh-grocery market share from traditional supermarkets. Amazon nuclear energy project
• Neutral Sentiment: Third-quarter results are the immediate focus. Wall Street expects earnings growth, but investors are watching AWS growth, operating margins, free cash flow and management’s outlook for capital expenditures. The company’s recent spending plans reportedly approach $200 billion to $220 billion, making the earnings call particularly important. Amazon earnings preview
• Negative Sentiment: AI investment is raising return-on-capital concerns. Reports say some Nvidia-powered server racks purchased by Amazon are sitting idle because data centers lack sufficient electricity, while Amazon has also abandoned a planned Virginia data-center campus. Such developments could delay monetization of its massive infrastructure spending. Amazon Nvidia chips and data-center power report
• Negative Sentiment: Competitive, regulatory and labor risks remain overhangs. Debate over whether AI is in a bubble, Walmart’s more open approach to AI-agent commerce, a proposed bill targeting subsidies for large AI data centers, and renewed Teamsters pressure on delivery rules could increase uncertainty or costs. Amazon and Walmart AI-agent commerce article

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Andrew Jassy sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $259.01, for a total value of $5,180,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,235,766 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $579,085,751.66. This trade represents a 0.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Matthew S. Garman sold 14,541 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 owned 17,794 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,609,713.64. The trade was a 44.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 71,589 shares of company stock valued at $18,580,515 in the last ninety days. 8.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Amazon.com Stock Down 4.6%

AMZN stock opened at $250.38 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.87, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $255.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $253.33. The company has a market cap of $2.70 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.03 and a beta of 1.45. Amazon.com, Inc. has a twelve month low of $196.00 and a twelve month high of $287.20.

Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The e-commerce giant reported $5.75 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.82 by $3.93. Amazon.com had a return on equity of 18.00% and a net margin of 17.44%. The firm had revenue of $200.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $197.03 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.68 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 19.6% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Amazon.com, Inc. will post 8.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Amazon.com Profile

Amazon.com, Inc is a global technology and e-commerce company founded by Jeff Bezos in 1994. Originally launched as an online bookstore, the company has expanded into a broad digital marketplace offering consumer products across numerous categories, including electronics, household goods, apparel, groceries and other merchandise. Amazon also sells products under its own brands and provides logistics, fulfillment and delivery services that support its retail operations and third-party sellers.

The company's principal businesses include online and physical retail, Amazon Web Services (AWS), digital advertising, subscription services and consumer technology.

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