Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Buys Shares of 3,664,707 Amazon.com, Inc. $AMZN

Key Points

• Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management acquired 3.66 million Amazon shares worth approximately $873.4 million in the second quarter, making Amazon its 27th-largest holding. Institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 72.2% of Amazon’s stock.
• Amazon reported quarterly EPS of $5.75, well above the $1.82 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 19.6% year over year to $200.61 billion. Shares opened at $253.71, with a market capitalization of approximately $2.74 trillion.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $321.19; however, concerns include heavy planned capital spending, potential negative free cash flow, regulatory scrutiny, and rising operating costs.

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. bought a new position in shares of Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 3,664,707 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock, valued at approximately $873,446,000. Amazon.com accounts for about 0.5% of Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.'s holdings, making the stock its 27th biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Cadence Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Amazon.com during the second quarter worth about $391,000. Academy Capital Management purchased a new position in shares of Amazon.com in the second quarter valued at approximately $58,676,000. CFO4Life Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Amazon.com in the second quarter valued at approximately $14,145,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Amazon.com in the second quarter valued at approximately $14,688,000. Finally, Fortress Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Amazon.com in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,445,000. 72.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Amazon.com Stock Performance

NASDAQ:AMZN opened at $253.71 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.74 trillion, a PE ratio of 20.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.97 and a beta of 1.44. The business's fifty day moving average price is $256.09 and its 200 day moving average price is $245.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.23, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.87. Amazon.com, Inc. has a 12 month low of $196.00 and a 12 month high of $287.20.

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

Key Headlines Impacting Amazon.com

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

• Positive Sentiment: Amazon agreed to purchase up to $8 billion of backup generators from Generac, including approximately $2.4 billion of deliveries in 2027–2028. The deal should help Amazon bring AWS data centers online despite grid-connection delays and power shortages, while Amazon receives warrants to purchase Generac shares. Generac Plugs into Amazon for an $8B AI-Powered Deal
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and investors continue to point to accelerating AWS demand, with reports citing a $169 billion annualized revenue run rate and a large cloud backlog. That supports expectations that AI-related infrastructure spending can translate into future sales, despite near-term cash-flow pressure. Amazon’s Andy Jassy Just Made a Startling Prediction
• Positive Sentiment: Project Mercury aims to expand Amazon’s same-day delivery network to more than 1,000 hubs by 2031. Bank of America called the initiative strategically important as Amazon attempts to narrow Walmart’s proximity and convenience advantage. Amazon’s secret weapon against Walmart could be a massive blitz in same-day delivery
• Positive Sentiment: AWS made its AI-powered hiring product, Amazon Connect Talent, generally available, expanding Amazon’s enterprise AI offerings beyond cloud infrastructure. Amazon has also received favorable attention from UBS analysts among top technology stock picks.
• Neutral Sentiment: Amazon is promoting industry and government cooperation on AI safety standards, emphasizing testing before release without calling for a broader slowdown in development. The stance may improve trust but is unlikely to materially change near-term results. Amazon Urges Industry and Government Partnership on AI Safeguards
• Negative Sentiment: Amazon faces European Commission scrutiny over marketplace rules that may restrict sellers from offering lower prices elsewhere, creating potential regulatory and compliance costs.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned that roughly $220 billion of planned 2026 capital expenditures could keep free cash flow negative. Higher wages, delivery costs and possible electricity-grid charges for data centers add to the spending burden.
• Negative Sentiment: U.S. senators have urged the FTC to investigate Amazon’s AI shopping tools over alleged suppression of U.S.-made products and misleading “Made in USA” labels. The company also continues to face reputational and legal attention related to its Prime settlement.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on AMZN. Piper Sandler reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $320.00 target price (up from $315.00) on shares of Amazon.com in a report on Friday, July 31st. Oppenheimer restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Amazon.com in a research note on Friday, July 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $375.00 price objective (up from $335.00) on shares of Amazon.com in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $320.00 price objective (up from $315.00) on shares of Amazon.com in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $365.00 target price (up from $330.00) on shares of Amazon.com in a report on Friday, July 31st. Fifty-six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $321.19.

Insider Buying and Selling at Amazon.com

In other Amazon.com news, VP Shelley Reynolds sold 2,343 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $259.01, for a total value of $606,860.43. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 119,780 shares in the company, valued at $31,024,217.80. This represents a 1.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP David Zapolsky sold 9,258 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $259.77, for a total transaction of $2,404,950.66. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 41,190 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,699,926.30. The trade was a 18.35% 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. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 71,589 shares of company stock worth $18,568,785. 8.90% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Amazon.com Profile

Amazon.com, Inc is a global technology and e-commerce company that operates online marketplaces and provides a broad range of consumer products and services. Its retail business sells merchandise directly to customers and enables third-party sellers to offer products through Amazon's websites and applications. The company also operates physical stores and provides services such as digital content, subscriptions, and consumer devices, including Kindle and Echo products.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) provides cloud computing, storage, database, analytics, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and other technology services to businesses, governments, and organizations.

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