Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Purchases 5,668 Shares of Amazon.com, Inc. $AMZN

Key Points

• Citizens Financial Group increased its Amazon stake by 0.8% in the fourth quarter, buying 5,668 shares and lifting its total holdings to 680,067 shares worth about $156.97 million.
• Institutional ownership remains heavy, with 72.20% of Amazon shares held by institutions and hedge funds. Several large investors, including Vanguard, State Street, and Geode Capital, also added to their positions recently.
• Amazon reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $2.78 versus the $1.63 estimate and revenue of $181.52 billion, while analysts kept a bullish outlook with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $312.66.

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI raised its position in Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN - Free Report) by 0.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 680,067 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock after buying an additional 5,668 shares during the quarter. Amazon.com accounts for 2.1% of Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI's holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI's holdings in Amazon.com were worth $156,973,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Amazon.com by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 832,274,556 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock valued at $158,348,557,000 after buying an additional 8,913,959 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Amazon.com by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 381,681,441 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock worth $83,805,794,000 after purchasing an additional 7,584,156 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Amazon.com by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 216,717,657 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock worth $47,332,625,000 after purchasing an additional 3,721,658 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Amazon.com during the 2nd quarter worth $27,438,011,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of Amazon.com by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 97,379,134 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock worth $18,527,354,000 after purchasing an additional 302,858 shares in the last quarter. 72.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Amazon.com

In other news, Director Jonathan Rubinstein sold 3,706 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $273.02, for a total transaction of $1,011,812.12. Following the sale, the director directly owned 74,948 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,462,302.96. The trade was a 4.71% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Matthew S. Garman sold 11,475 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $262.66, for a total value of $3,014,023.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 11,430 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,002,203.80. This trade represents a 50.10% 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. In the last three months, insiders have sold 201,026 shares of company stock valued at $49,128,874. 8.90% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Amazon.com Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AMZN opened at $266.32 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $2.86 trillion, a P/E ratio of 31.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 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. The stock's 50-day moving average is $239.50 and its 200-day moving average is $231.86. Amazon.com, Inc. has a 1-year low of $196.00 and a 1-year high of $278.56.

Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 29th. The e-commerce giant reported $2.78 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $1.15. The company had revenue of $181.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $177.28 billion. Amazon.com had a return on equity of 19.92% and a net margin of 12.22%.The business's quarterly revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.59 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Amazon.com, Inc. will post 7.71 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $333.00 target price (up from $304.00) on shares of Amazon.com in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their target price on shares of Amazon.com from $320.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $330.00 target price (up from $280.00) on shares of Amazon.com in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Amazon.com in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Amazon.com from $285.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Fifty-seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $312.66.

Key Amazon.com News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America reiterated a Buy rating and raised its price target to $310, saying Amazon’s AI-powered shopping tools could help defend and expand its retail franchise. BofA Pounds the Table on Amazon (AMZN) Stock, Sets $310 Price Target
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentary highlighted Amazon’s breakout above key technical levels and said the stock remains in a bullish setup, which can attract momentum buyers. Amazon (AMZN) Recently Broke Out Above the 20-Day Moving Average
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage from multiple outlets pointed to Amazon’s AI initiatives, including Alexa for Shopping, as a potential long-term growth driver for retail and advertising. Amazon's Alexa for Shopping seen driving long-term retail growth
• Positive Sentiment: Jeff Bezos and other supporters defended heavy AI spending, and Bill Ackman reportedly added to Amazon, reinforcing the idea that major investors still see upside in the stock. Billionaire Bill Ackman Piled Into Amazon and Microsoft and Slashed His Fund's Mammoth Stake in This AI Kingpin by 95%
• Neutral Sentiment: Amazon shareholders re-elected the board and approved the existing pay and governance framework, signaling continuity rather than a major corporate change. Amazon Shareholders Back Board, Pay and Governance Status Quo
• Negative Sentiment: Amazon also faced fresh criticism from U.K. lawmakers over delivery practices, which could add regulatory pressure to the company’s logistics and marketplace operations. Amazon (AMZN) Hit with New Accusation From U.K. Lawmakers

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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