With holiday shopping season under way, Amazon (SYM: AMZN) should be the top beneficiary.
For one, according to eMarketer, U.S. holiday sales are expected to accelerate. “Total US retail sales for November and December 2024 will increase by a healthy 4.8% YoY to reach $1.353 trillion, with ecommerce growing at nearly twice that rate.”
Two, according to Forrester, “U.S. Online Holiday Retail Forecast 2024,” total holiday retail sales in the U.S. will grow 3.7% year-over-year and reach $1 trillion in 2024, up from $964 billion during the 2023 holiday season, as noted by ChainStoreAge.com.
Three, in most years, Amazon is a no-brainer stock to buy and hold for the holiday rush. In fact, with the exception of 2022, the ecommerce giant has historically pushed higher heading into the holidays, which we expect to happen again this year.
Plus, analysts at Needham just reiterated a buy rating on AMZN with a $250 price target. The firm noted, “AMZN’s focus is on customer-centric innovation, and most of its product development comes directly from customer feedback. AMZN’s culture allows every FTE (full time equivalent) to pitch ideas and see them work-shopped, implemented and scaled quickly.”
Last trading at $214.10, we’d like to see AMZN test $225 ahead of the holidays.
