Amazon (AMZN) / Jeff Bezos 02 (Nov 18 - Dec 26)

[winston]

not vested

Amazon.com (AMZN)

If I were asked to guarantee a great long-term technology bet back in 1978, I might have said Digital Equipment Corp., whose CEO, Ken Olsen, famously (although misquoted) said the year before, “there is no reason for any individual to have a computer in his home.”

He was speaking, however, of massive computers that control everything in the home. Today, Amazon is attempting just that.

The PC industry has since risen and fallen. When we talk technology today, we talk of clouds and devices, neither of which existed, as such, at the start of the twenty-first century. Mostly today, we talk of the cloud.

Of all the companies I call “Cloud Czars,” the one with the brightest future appears to be Amazon. That’s because its business is highly diversified. It uses the cloud in retail, in media, in computer services and it’s going to be in banking and healthcare.

Amazon represents an essential infrastructure for modern life, cloud computers and scaled fulfillment centers. Tens of thousands of companies depend upon Amazon to compete with companies like Walmart (NYSE:WMT). In any move to break up Amazon, these merchants would rise as one and stop it.

Amazon, of course, was only supposed to be an online bookstore at its founding in 1994, competing with larger, physical bookstores such as Portland’s Powell’s Books. But CEO Jeff Bezos saw new opportunities and took them, usually with an eye toward re-selling access to the infrastructure he needed to sell them.

That’s where Amazon Web Services, the company’s chief profit driver, came from. Amazon needed scaled, reliable data centers to run the online store, and found it could build more by re-selling the capacity, while larger competitors like Google, now part of Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL), were keeping those resources to themselves.

It was already selling access to its physical warehouses as well as its financial and delivery infrastructure. Genius is often what seems obvious at the time.

The problem here, of course, is that no one lives forever. I can’t promise that Bezos’ successors will be as quick-witted as he has been, that they won’t stumble or go down blind alleys.

Source: Investor Place

[winston]

not vested

Best Stocks to Buy for the Next Decade: Amazon (AMZN)

Not only is Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) CEO and founder Jeff Bezos a great chief executive, but Amazon has its hands in so many pies — including a very profitable cloud business that generates almost $1 billion in annual operating income — that it’s hard to fathom just how big Amazon could be a decade from now.

While Amazon’s AWS cloud business is a big deal, Amazon Prime is the service that delivers the goods when it comes to building the foundation for AMZN stock. More than 100 million people subscribe to Amazon Prime at $99 per year.

It’s not the $9.9 billion in annual subscription revenue that matters, but the amount each of those subscribers spends on other Amazon products. Statistics show that 76% of Amazon Prime members spend more than they did before paying the annual $99 fee.

That’s what you call “pulling power,” and it’s a big reason why AMZN stock will be a winner for the long haul.

Source: Investor Place

[winston]

not vested

Tech Stocks to Buy for the Sector Resurgence: Amazon (AMZN)

AMZN stock that is now getting “posterized,” as they say in the NBA. After getting off to a brilliant start and maintaining that momentum throughout most of the year, Amazon received a gut-check in September.

The following month, the markets mercilessly laid into the e-commerce giant, dropping its shares 21%.

But is this the time to go contrarian on AMZN stock? My InvestorPlace colleague Tyler Craig doesn’t think so. He views Amazon as a dead-cat bounce. Considering that the company has had difficulty breaking past its 200-day moving average, I see his point.

On the flipside, though, AMZN stock has countered prior negative technical posturing with significant vigor. Recall that in early spring of this year, Amazon suffered a brief 14% decline before rebounding sharply.

History isn’t guaranteed to repeat. One thing I do know is that you’re probably better served betting on AMZN stock than betting against it.

Source: Investor Place

[winston]

not vested

Tech Stocks to Buy for the Sector Resurgence: Amazon (AMZN)

AMZN stock that is now getting “posterized,” as they say in the NBA. After getting off to a brilliant start and maintaining that momentum throughout most of the year, Amazon received a gut-check in September.

The following month, the markets mercilessly laid into the e-commerce giant, dropping its shares 21%.

But is this the time to go contrarian on AMZN stock? My InvestorPlace colleague Tyler Craig doesn’t think so. He views Amazon as a dead-cat bounce. Considering that the company has had difficulty breaking past its 200-day moving average, I see his point.

On the flipside, though, AMZN stock has countered prior negative technical posturing with significant vigor. Recall that in early spring of this year, Amazon suffered a brief 14% decline before rebounding sharply.

History isn’t guaranteed to repeat. One thing I do know is that you’re probably better served betting on AMZN stock than betting against it.

Source: Investor Place

[behappyalways]

Amazon begins hiring for top secret new device
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/ ... ew-device/

[winston]

not vested

Amazon (AMZN) had fallen more 25% since making an all-time closing high of $2,039.51 on Sept. 4.

Louis Navellier, editor of Accelerated Profits is still very bullish on AMZN and views the recent dip as a buying opportunity.

In the near-term, online shopping from Thanksgiving through Cyber Monday set records this year, and Amazon.com accounts for 50% of all holiday shopping. But Louis is in the stock for the long-term.

I understand that AMZN comes with a hefty price tag, so if you'd rather not add the stock at this time, that's fine. However, when it comes to monopolistic, market-dominating companies like Amazon, I am comfortable with paying a premium. Judging from analysts' forecasts, Amazon shows no signs of slowing down.

For FY 2019, analysts are forecasting 34.8% annual earnings growth and 20.4% annual sales growth. Then again, Amazon has a history of blowout earnings surprises. In fact, for the past several quarters, Amazon has posted double-, triple- and even quadruple-digit earnings surprises!

The good news is that AMZN remains a buy, according to Louis. And the price is a bargain after coming off of its peak.

Source: Investor Place

[winston]

not vested

Stocks to Buy with the Trade War on Pause: Amazon (AMZN)
Percent Off All Time High: 15%

Why It Has Been Killed: E-commerce and cloud giant Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) was once the symbol of unstoppable growth in the stock market. But that has changed over the past few months as the company’s e-commerce business has dramatically slowed, especially on the international front (just 13% growth last quarter, versus 29% growth in the year ago quarter).

This massive slowdown has a lot to do with trade war friction dampening global economic health, and thus, the trade war has been a big drag on Amazon stock.

Why It Will Bounce Back: Everywhere else you look at Amazon, there is still a lot to like. Margins are heading higher. The cloud business is still growing at a 40%-plus clip. The digital ad business is still growing at a 100%-plus clip.

Moreover, the company is making big moves into offline retail and pharma, both of which constitute huge opportunities for Amazon. Thus, the only thing not to like is the slowing growth trend in the international retail business.

Retreating trade war headwinds will improve the outlook for that business to rebound. As that outlook improves, Amazon stock should bounce back because of robust firepower in all its other growth segments.

Source: Investor Place

[winston]

not vested

Stocks to Buy: Amazon (AMZN)

“As the dominant player in U.S. eCommerce, Amazon continues to experience secular growth as retail dollars shift online,” the analyst explained.

He believes the e-commerce giant has a “significant opportunity” to capture a larger piece of the roughly $1 trillion worldwide eCommerce market (ex China).

This is thanks to:-
1) the company’s growing logistics network and
2) its expanding Prime membership program.

Indeed, an impressive 37 out of 38 analysts covering the stock are bullish. That’s with a $2,154 average price target (27% upside potential).

Bear in mind that while GOOGL stock might be struggling, AMZN is still enjoying strong momentum. Shares are up 40% year-to-date.

Source: Investor Place

[winston]

not vested

Stocks to Buy: Amazon (AMZN)

Contrary to Street expectations, mega stock Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) failed to impress with its recent 3Q18 revenue results.

Meanwhile, AMZN guided for Q4 operating margin of $2.10-$3.60B (4.1% margin at the midpoint). This was below the Street’s $3.86B forecast (5.2% margin).

But don’t be put off. Instead, consider this an early holiday discount. Stifel Nicolaus’ Scott Devitt (Track Record & Ratings) stuck to his Buy rating post-earnings with a $2,400 price target. From current levels, this indicates 44% upside potential.

“Weaker than expected guidance may caution some, though we note results remain strong on an absolute basis and maintain our positive view given Amazon’s leading position in the Cloud services and retail sectors and the growing margin opportunity as the revenue mix shifts towards the higher margin AWS and advertising businesses” states the Stifel analyst.

Plus from a longer-term perspective, AMZN still stands out from the crowd. “Amazon, in our view, remains one of the best longer-term values in Tech and we still see a path to where the shares could double over the next three years,” says Aegis’ Victor Anthony.

These analysts enjoy a clear majority when it comes to AMZN stock. With 36 recent buy ratings, only one analyst (KeyBanc’s Edward Yruma) is still on the sidelines.

Source: Investor Place

[winston]

not vested

Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) is an easy one to start with. After a sluggish 2018 — the stock only rose a mere 28%, when its three-year average is around 58% annually — it is already moving quickly to get back on its uniquely powerful growth pace.

And as long as consumers keep spending, AMZN will keep racking up the gains.

AMZN is moving into the beauty sector now, launching its “find” brand in the UK, with move regions to follow. Its focused on beauty supplies at the $20-and-under price level, but if its popular, you can be sure AMZN will expand up the price chain.

The one tough spot is its move into the Indian market. Having already sunk at least $5 billion developing the market, new laws may make its headway more difficult. But it still has plenty of opportunities beyond India.

Source: Daily Trade Alert