Live Updates: Stifel Boosts Amazon Stock on E-Commerce Potential

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Welcome to InvestorPlace’s Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) live blog, where you can find up-to-the-second insights in Amazon stock news today.

[Check back often, as this page will be updated with more Amazon stock news and insights each day the market is open.]

[Tuesday, April 21, 12:45 p.m.]

AMZN shares are down 2.9% as of this writing.
According to CNBC’s Annie Palmer, Amazon workers are staging a “mass call out” over working conditions at the company’s facilities. At least 300 workers across 50 sites have signed on to the protest.
The call out began Tuesday, and is expected to last all week.
The sign-up page for the protest, coordinated by United for Respect, says employees have contracted Covid-19 at 130 different warehouses. The workers are hoping to raise attention over their “lack of protection.” They are also asking Amazon to immediately close any facilities where individuals have tested positive.

[Tuesday, April 21, 12:05 p.m.]

AMZN shares are down 3.1% as of this writing.
InvestorPlace’s Thomas Niel wrote today that “Amazon Stock Is Just Way Too Hot to Touch Right Now” as it trades near $2,400 per share. He recommends that investors wait for a pullback before accumulating more shares or entering a new position.

[Tuesday, April 21, 10:40 a.m.]

Jefferies analyst Brent Thill raised his price target on AMZN stock from $2,300 to $2,800 per share. Using a sum-of-the-parts analysis, he says there’s a path for Amazon to hit $4,000.
Why’s Thill bullish? He thinks that while the novel coronavirus is boosting demand in the short term, it will also have long-lasting impacts on Amazon’s operating income.
AMZN is the top large-cap stock pick at Jefferies.

[Tuesday, April 21, 10:15 a.m.]

Shifting away from pandemic news, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos pledged $10 million Tuesday morning to restore and protect forests in the northeastern U.S.
This is the first investment from the company’s $100 million Right Now Climate Fund, which Bezos introduced in September 2019. Amazon hopes to be “carbon neutral” by 2040.

[Tuesday, April 21, 9:40 a.m.]

According to reporting from Recode, Amazon administered a survey to its sellers, asking them what insurance they offer their employees and whether they would consider an alternative. This survey has some speculating Amazon is rolling out health insurance offerings for its sellers.
Amazon sellers account for 60% of Amazon’s retail sales, and there are 900,000 active sellers in the U.S. alone.
Amazon’s other forays into healthcare include its 2018 acquisition of PillPack, its joint venture Haven and Amazon Care, its virtual healthcare clinic for Seattle employees.

[Tuesday, April 21, 9:10 a.m.]

Billionaire investor Mark Cuban says AMZN stock will continue to go “up, up, up” even after the novel coronavirus subsides. He argues that even once stay-at-home orders are lifted, consumers will be hesitant to go to stores, giving Amazon.com sales a further boost.
AMZN shares are up 30% year-to-date, and the company recently announced it is bringing on 175,000 new employees.

[Monday, April 20, 4:59 p.m.]

Based on a report from market research firm Consumer Intelligence Research Partners, TheStreet.com reports that the U.S. membership to Amazon’s Prime service has grown to 118 million individuals members as of March 31. That would represent an addition of 18 million paid subscribers in the first quarter of this year.
The reporting also estimated that 70% of 30-day trials converted to paying customers last month.

[Monday, April 20, 4:51 p.m.]

According to a report in Barron’s, investment bank Morgan Stanley has removed Amazon from its coveted “Fresh Money” list of preferred stocks to purchase. The bank recommended that investors “lock in profits today.”

This article was originally published by Investorplace.com. Read the original article here.