What's Going On With Amazon.Com Stock Thursday?

Amazon.Com, Inc AMZN stock is trading higher Thursday amid its preparations for a significant overhaul of its grocery business to grab a larger share of the $1.5 trillion U.S. grocery market intensifying competition with Walmart Inc WMT and Kroger Co KR.

It looks to merge its various e-commerce supermarket offerings, including Whole Foods, Amazon Fresh, and Amazon.com, into one online cart to simplify the shopping experience for customers. 

Also, Amazon will start offering fresh-food delivery to customers who are not Prime subscribers, expanding its reach, Bloomberg cites from Tony Hoggett's interview.

Amazon is revamping its physical stores, focusing on traditional retail touches and improving the customer experience. It is also experimenting with new technologies, like its Dash carts for quicker checkouts, and is considering adding refrigerated sections to its urban warehouses.

The move to offer more groceries, including non-organic products, through Whole Foods is part of Amazon's strategy to become a one-stop shop for groceries. It aims to consolidate the grocery shopping of households under one roof.

Amazon's focus on the low-margin grocery sector aligns with its use of regular pantry refills to drive traffic and encourage customers to buy other products. 

The shift in consumer behavior during the pandemic accelerated Amazon's growth in the grocery and consumables market, making it a crucial part of the company's overall business strategy.

In July, the company permanently slashed hundreds of zone lead positions at Amazon Fresh grocery store under a cost reduction plan.

CEO Andy Jassy had expressed commitment to making the grocery business work but paused new physical Fresh locations' opening for reevaluation.

Price Action: AMZN shares traded higher by 0.98% at $128.46 on the last check Thursday.

Photo via Wikimedia Commons

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.