Takeaways From 4 Bullish Amazon Analysts Following Q4 Earnings

After the release of the company’s preliminary fourth-quarter results with an update on first-quarter guidance on Thursday, Amazon.com Inc. AMZN stock surged 13.54% on Friday to close at $3152.79. Let’s examine the updated perspectives and sentiments of various sell-side firms below:

-KeyBanc Maintains Overweight Rating, With $4,000 Price Target

Positive on impressive advertising business presenting “an incremental leg of growth” with continued improvements in analytics to allow for optimized pricing methods; notes operating margin at 2.5% and believes “COVID costs should moderate.”

-Telsey Advisory Group Maintains Outperform Rating, With $3,850 Price Target

Highlights AWS operating margin expansion with this trend “expected to continue to give strong demand and higher asset utilization” but notes “the sales outlook was a touch softer than anticipated” with North America retail operating margins contracting.

-Needham Maintains Buy Rating, With $4,150 Price Target

Sees more than “$4B of extra costs attributable to inflationary labor and logistics pressures” weighing on the quarter; believes based on SOTP analysis that “investors are paying nothing for Amazon’s eCommerce revenues.”

-Raymond James Maintains Outperform Rating, Raises Price Target From $3,840 To $3,950

Positive on AWS growth accelerating 40% year-over-year with numerous “new and expanded partnerships across multiple industries and companies” along with continued advertising strength; warns on “slower eCommerce growth on tough comps and reopening” with expense headwinds to continue into the first quarter.

Also Read: Amazon Q4 Earnings Takeaways: Holiday Costs, Prime Price Hike, Stock Soars