Amazon (AMZN): For now AWS is the issue, not retail - Bernstein

Bernstein analysts led by Mark Shmulik weighed in on the e-commerce sector as the Q4 earnings season slowly comes to an end.

The analyst noted the solid performance of this sector year-to-date (YTD), underpinned by positive Ebitda revisions. Shmulik notes that stable sales estimates suggest a bottom.

“For 2023, there is some hope that eCommerce growth trends are nearing the bottom, absent a consumer capitulation, though sentiment remains weak,” he wrote in a note.

Adjusted for inflation, eCommerce grew 8.4% year-over-year while overall retail fell 1.7%. As far as Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) is concerned, retail is “fine” given the uncertain eCommerce environment, Shmulik added.

“Most positively, there were greenshoots on the retail margin story as we saw a beat (ex-one time items), and if/when we do get that clean EBIT beat, the stock should react strongly. For now AWS is the issue, not retail,” the analyst added.

Elsewhere, analysts highlighted Etsy (NASDAQ: ETSY) as a “high-quality business” despite the stock receiving a double downgrade at Jefferies yesterday.

By Senad Karaahmetovic

You May Also Be Interested In

• Amazon Prime Day could drive $21.6 billion in sales, boost Alexa adoption
• Phillip Securities Downgrades Amazon.com (AMZN) to Accumulate
• Morgan Stanley Resumes Global Payments (GPN) at Equalweight