Editor’s Note: Related tickers, Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY), Overstock.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:OSTK)
Obama and the Senate Target The Internet Shopping Gravy Train For Amazon, eBay And Others (Forbes)
There are a number of reasons that consumers have flocked to online shopping sites run by Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY), and Overstock.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:OSTK) as well as the online sites run by major retailers such as Macy’s, Inc. (NYSE:M), Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT), and other traditional brick and mortar retailers. Convenience and the ability to compare prices and get better deals are some of those reasons. Given the unemployment rate, which has continued to fall not because of a robust jobs recovery, but rather because each month more people leave the workforce, and tepid disposable income it makes sense that consumers have become big time price shoppers. And with a few clicks, it’s easy to do. If your lucky, you can also wiggle some free shipping and get your package via United Parcel Service, Inc. (NYSE:UPS) or FedEx Corporation (NYSE:FDX) in no time at all.
Are investors willing to give Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) as much credit for its big investments in the future as they are giving Internet search giant Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)? It’s a crucial question to consider ahead of Amazon.com’s AMZN +1.52% first-quarter report on Thursday afternoon, where expectations are clearly high. Amazon’s shares are trading more than 130 times estimated earnings for the next four quarters — about eight times the average multiple for its peer group, according to FactSet data. And Wall Street clearly sees the stock going much higher. The current range of price targets go from a low of $245 to a high of $370 — with $320 at the median, which is more than 20% above the stock’s current level.
Amazon’s AWS Turns On Redshift Data Warehousing And EC2 High Storage In Europe (TechCrunch)
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)’s business model, CTO Werner Vogels reminded us today, is based on “low margins, high volume”, and today the company announced a development on how it’s applying that principle to its enterprise services. From today, AWS is expanding to Europe its Redshift data warehousing service and its EC2 High Storage service. Amazon first announced the intention to take Redshift global in February; it’s actually turning on Europe today. The news of the international expansion was made this morning during the Amazon Web Services Summit in London, part of a wider roadshow for AWS. Redshift, Amazon’s petabyte-scale solution to better manage huge backlogs of data, was first announced in November 2012. It is very competitive on price: traditional data warehousing solutions can cost between $19,000 and $25,000 per terabyte while Redshift charges $1,000 per terabyte per year.
Analyst Downgrades: Amazon.com, Inc., Yum! Brands, Inc., and Mosaic Co (SchaeffersResearch)
Analysts are weighing in today on Internet marketplace Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), quick-service restaurateur Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM), and agricultural chemicals producer Mosaic Co (NYSE:MOS). Here’s a quick roundup of today’s bearish brokerage notes. …which is due to reveal quarterly earnings after this Thursday’s close — saw its price target slashed to $350 from $360 at Topeka this morning. However, the equity has advanced about 40% during the past year, which could explain the prevailing optimistic attitude among the brokerage bunch. In fact, Amazon.com, Inc. sports no fewer than 19 “strong buys” and two “buy” recommendations, versus 10 “holds” and not a single “sell” suggestion. Furthermore, the stock’s average 12-month price target of $315 reflects expected upside of about 19.5% to yesterday’s closing price of $263.55.
Digi, Amazon.com, Facebook: Intellectual Property (Bloomberg)
Digi International Inc. (NASDAQ:DGII), a provider of wireless products, has settled a patent case brought by U.S. Ethernet Innovations, the Minnetonka, Minnesota-based company said in a statement. …Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)’s founder Jeffrey Bezos is a named inventor on an application for a patent on a portable device that receives both content and power wirelessly. According to application 20130069865, the device is a display system that is remote from, and without a tangible connection to, a primary station. This would enable the device to be smaller and more lightweight than many present-day devices that must incorporate a large battery. Amazon.com said in the application that while the size of batteries used in mobile devices are “continuously getting smaller, the operational or functional time of these smaller batteries is often insufficient for many users.”
EBay Asks Users to Fight National Sales Tax Bill (WSJ)
eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY) +1.67% is trying to enlist its users in a fight against a national online sales tax bill. The company on Sunday said it sent tens of millions of emails urging its active U.S. sellers to push for changes to a bill now before Congress that would allow all states to collect sales tax from online merchants, whether they have operations in that state or not. EBay said the bill’s sales threshold for triggering the tax is too low. “The legislation treats you and big multi-billion dollar online retailers–-such as Amazon—exactly the same,” said John Donahoe, eBay’s chief executive, in one of the emails. He said only businesses with at least $10 million in annual out-of-state sales, or 50 or more employees, should qualify for sales tax, compared with the $1 million sales threshold in the bill.
Is eBay a Real Powerhouse on the Stock Market? (Business2Community)
When it comes to the recent pullback in the market, many people naturally wonder if this is the time to start accumulating certain companies, especially technology stocks. The answer, of course, is far more complicated. Obviously, each individual must assess their goals and risk profile before considering any investment. One company that I have liked over the past few years has been eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY). While many people believe eBay is still primarily a place to sell your knick-knacks, they’re wrong. During the latest quarter, the company reported total revenues were up 14% year-over-year. (Source: “Q1 2013 financial highlights,” eBay Inc. web site, April 17, 2013.)
In eBay’s kitchen: Saving the earth, one edamame burger at a time (BizJournals)
The head chefs at eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY) are experimenting with new dishes to lower the carbon footprint of the roughly 1,200-1,300 meals prepared daily at the San Jose campus on North First Street. Executive Chef Bob Clark of Bon Appetit Management – the Palo Alto-based catering company that runs the food operation for employees of eBay and PayPal Inc. – took me on a tour to see the company’s two cafes and outdoor garden. Also on the agenda: demos of two low-carbon dishes. Edamame and carrot burgers with high-fiber vegetables replaced much less environmentally friendly beef and cheese, while smoothies were made with almond soy milk instead of regular dairy.
Overstock.com Rating Increased to Buy at Bank of America (OSTK) (UtahPeoplesPost)
Bank of America Corp (NYSE:BAC) upgraded shares of Overstock.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:OSTK) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a report issued on Friday, TheFlyOnTheWall.com reports. They currently have $20.00 target price on the stock, up from their previous target price of $12.00. “Overstock.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:OSTK) reported Q1 rev/adj. EBITDA of $312mn/$12mn, above our $282mn/$8mn ests. The top-line beat was due to higher than expected partner rev growth of 22% y/y vs. 9% estimate while the bottom-line benefited from better operating expense control. We believe strong Q1 results are not just a head fake (something Overstock has been notorious at doing in the past) but believe the company is turning the corner as will continue to benefit from easy y/y comps, better controlled operating expenses, and new marketing and growth initiatives.,” Bank of America’s analyst wrote.
Email Marketing Gone Wrong (Business2Community)
I love Overstock.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:OSTK) Tons of the furniture items and things throughout my home were ordered from the site. Quality is always good, I get the stuff fast and the prices are perfect. But lately I’m a bit confused by their email campaigns. …The image here in this post is from a recent email but I must’ve received at least 15 of these ‘limited time’ sales emails over the last month. That is nearly every single day I am receiving an email. Guess what is happening? I’m ignoring them because I know the sale is not over forever. The first email I hesitated on hitting the delete key and almost clicked-through to take advantage. But after the 5th email stating that I had just another 24 hours to take advantage, I stopped believing it was true. I know that there will be more and I don’t need to act now. The entire point of offering a sale for a ‘limited time’ is lost because Overstock.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:OSTK) is not staying true to their word.
