Amazon stock pops as analysts applaud record Prime Day sales
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Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) was among the top movers in the Nasdaq on Friday, driving higher after posting strong Prime Day sales.
The e-commerce giant said small and medium-sized businesses did better than ever, aiding in amassing $3B in sales during the event. In total, 300M items were sold during the annual sales event.
Following the report of record, Wall Street was eager to applaud the strong sales not only as a strong signal for Amazon (AMZN), but for the resiliency of the consumer amid generationally-high inflation. For example, Morgan Stanley analyst Brian Nowak advised clients that Amazon (AMZN) stock is âprimed to accelerateâ in the back half of the year.
âThe 300M items sold during Prime Day 2022 implies ~20% growth vs last Prime Day 2021, meaning that AMZN was able to match the growth rate it generated during COVID even through reopening,â he wrote. âPrime Day results make us incrementally more confident in the strength of the consumer, their willingness to spend post pull forward in COVID demand, and as a result AMZN's forward topline growth.â
He reiterated his âBuyâ rating on shares and assigned a bullish $175 price target to shares.
Adding to that optimism, Bank of America analyst Justin Post said the results give him confidence that the Seattle-based behemoth can beat third quarter earnings expectations âin what otherwise could be a tougher quarter for the eCommerce industryâ due to reopening and inflation impacts. While Post remained wary of gross margin issues amid higher freight costs, he assigned an even higher $188 price target to shares while maintaining a âBuyâ rating on shares.
Barclays analyst Ross Sandler zeroed in on the third quarter expectations as well, suspecting that the stock may pivot on better than expected results. In fact, he advised that a recession could be a positive for Amazon as the eCommerce giant actually gained market share following the Great Financial Crisis. In short, a market downturn and a trade down from consumers could help the eCommerce business rather than hurt it, according to Sandler.
âWe would add selectively into the print,â he concluded, assigning a $195 price target to shares and reiterating a âBuyâ rating.
Shares rose 3.54% in the waning hours of Fridayâs trading.
Read more about Wall Streetâs ratings and targets for the stock.