Amazon Could Make Smaller-Scale Purchases In AI/Machine Learning, AR/VR, Cloud

Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN acquisition of Whole Foods Market is now officially complete, which means many investors are pondering what's next for the online giant that now boasts a physical retail space.

Unfortunately, the answer is Amazon likely doesn't have any large-scale acquisition plans for the near term, Baird Equity Research's Colin Sebastian's commented in a research report. Amazon will stay true to its "disciplined" acquisition strategy and will likely now focus on optimizing its Whole Foods acquisition, which fits in with its multi-channel grocery strategy.

The acquisition of Whole Foods will replace some store visits for Prime members through Amazon Fresh, but at the same time, many Prime users prefer "pick-up points" or to buy their food in-store, the analyst continued. This can create "cold chain efficiencies" that will help Amazon increase its overall scale in all aspects of the grocery store, from online to delivery and in-store.

tipranks.png

Moreover, the integration of Prime with Whole Foods will likely result in share gains within the under-penetrated grocery category and also represent a "Prime member acquisition tool," Sebastian also noted.

Finally, Amazon could still be open to overseeing small-scale opportunistic acquisitions in areas such as artificial and augmented reality, cloud, machine learning, and artificial intelligence.

Related Links:

Bananas, Eggs, Salmon And Kale Among The Many Items Now Cheaper At Whole Foods

4 Topics Of Interest As The Amazon-Whole Foods Deal Is Now Official

Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs
Comments
Loading...
date
ticker
name
Price Target
Upside/Downside
Recommendation
Firm
Posted In: Analyst ColorM&AAnalyst RatingsTechGeneralfoodFood PricesGroceryGrocery storesWhole Foods
Benzinga simplifies the market for smarter investing

Trade confidently with insights and alerts from analyst ratings, free reports and breaking news that affects the stocks you care about.

Join Now: Free!