Verity Asset Management Inc. Sells 9,506 Shares of Amazon.com, Inc. $AMZN

Key Points

• Verity Asset Management cut its Amazon stake by 51.2% in the fourth quarter, selling 9,506 shares and ending with 9,076 shares worth about $2.1 million.
• Despite that sale, institutional ownership remains strong, with 72.20% of Amazon shares held by institutions and several other funds recently adding to or starting positions in the stock.
• Amazon continues to draw broad Wall Street support: multiple analysts raised price targets, and the consensus rating remains “Moderate Buy” with an average target of $312.66.

Verity Asset Management Inc. reduced its position in Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN - Free Report) by 51.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,076 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock after selling 9,506 shares during the quarter. Amazon.com comprises about 0.9% of Verity Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Verity Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Amazon.com were worth $2,095,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fairway Wealth LLC increased its holdings in 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 bought a new position in Amazon.com in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. Bridge Generations Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Amazon.com by 2,330.0% in the 3rd quarter. Bridge Generations Wealth Management LLC now owns 243 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 233 shares during the period. Cooksen Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Amazon.com by 23.5% in the 2nd quarter. Cooksen Wealth LLC now owns 247 shares of the e-commerce giant's stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 47 shares during the period. Finally, Sagard Holdings Management Inc. bought a new position in Amazon.com in the 2nd quarter valued at about $79,000. 72.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

More 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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

AMZN has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price target on shares of Amazon.com from $320.00 to $345.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 5th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Amazon.com from $310.00 to $315.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Mizuho raised their price target on shares of Amazon.com from $315.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Amazon.com in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Amazon.com from $298.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $312.66.

Amazon.com Stock Down 0.8%

Amazon.com stock opened at $266.32 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.18. Amazon.com, Inc. has a 52-week low of $196.00 and a 52-week high of $278.56. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $239.50 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $231.86. The firm has a market cap of $2.86 trillion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.86, a PEG ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.46.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.63 by $1.15. Amazon.com had a net margin of 12.22% and a return on equity of 19.92%. The firm had revenue of $181.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $177.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.59 EPS. The company's revenue was up 16.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Amazon.com, Inc. will post 7.71 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Andrew R. Jassy sold 31,352 shares of Amazon.com stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total value of $8,621,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 2,175,766 shares in the company, valued at $598,335,650. The trade was a 1.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Douglas J. Herrington sold 27,500 shares of Amazon.com stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $7,562,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 471,361 shares of the company's stock, valued at $129,624,275. This represents a 5.51% 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. Insiders have sold a total of 201,026 shares of company stock worth $49,128,874 in the last 90 days. 8.90% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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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