Our third Holiday Winner is likely no surprise.

It's none other than Amazon(AMZN).

Amazon is widely recognized for its broad e-commerce marketplace but is involved in other growing technology industries like cloud computing, digital streaming, online advertising, and AI. It owns a diverse set of subsidiaries from AWS to Whole Foods and sells its own Echo, Fire Tablet/TV, and Kindle consumer electronics.

Amazon’s vast selection, competitive pricing, and fast delivery options make it the go-to platform for holiday shopping across categories.

Fiscal 2024 Q3 Earnings --- stock rose 6.2% on November 1st

• Revenue up 11% YoY to $158.9 billion (beat)
• EPS up 52% YoY to $1.43 (beat)
• Provided Q4 sales growth guidance of 7% to 11% YoY

Company Updates

AMZN kicked off its holiday shopping season October 8-9 with Prime Big Deal Days offering Prime members exclusive access to deals on electronics, home goods, toys, and Amazon devices. Management dubbed the 48-hour event “strong”.

The company is tapping generative AI to enhance the consumer experience. Its Rufus AI-powered shopping assistant and AI Shopping Guides are personalizing and simplifying online shopping like never before.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced that it is building an AI supercomputer as part of a push to make its in-house Trainium chips a “viable alternative” to Nvidia. It is also developing a new server to be used by AI startup Anthropic — in which it has invested $8 billion.

Superior Consumer Sentiment

AMZN has the highest level of consumer sentiment, at 69% positive, vs. its peers.

Amazon’s high happiness level has remained largely unchanged over the past year leaving its core aspects as the primary source of consumer sentiment. 80% of internet users cite free and fast shipping as the reason for using Amazon.

The company’s broad selection of items and solid pricing are close second and third reasons according to consumers. Amazon is renowned for these features, making them the go-to e-commerce option, especially during the holiday season.

Growing Web Traffic

Amazon's web traffic surged 19% year-over-year, outpacing major brick-and-mortar retailers as e-commerce continues its holiday dominance.

Mobile shopping is projected to drive over 50% of holiday e-commerce sales, building on strong Thanksgiving and Cyber Five performance.

With Amazon capturing the majority of last year's holiday shoppers and showing accelerating web traffic, their market leadership appears poised to strengthen further. Additional drivers inside its “Prime” membership offerings include live tv and advertising revenue.

Trend Watch: Extended Holiday Season

Half of holiday consumers began their holiday shopping before Thanksgiving.

In 2022, Amazon launched a second Prime Day event in October. This event provided an early access to sales and deals for shoppers, encouraging many consumers to begin their holiday shopping earlier in the year.

Shortly after, Walmart and Target both launched their own events in October to provide deals and maintain holiday sales. For many consumers, these events now kick off the Holiday shopping season, extending the total holiday shopping period by nearly a month.

Reliable and Useful

Takeaway

With heightened consumer activity during the season, Amazon is poised to benefit from increased demand for convenience, last-minute gifting, and exclusive deals through its Prime membership.

Additional drivers include its glowing positivity, growing web traffic, and a much longer holiday season.