Investors Sell Amazon.com (AMZN) on Strength (AMZN)

Investors sold shares of Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) on strength during trading hours on Thursday. $1,878.51 million flowed into the stock on the tick-up and $2,001.31 million flowed out of the stock on the tick-down, for a money net flow of $122.80 million out of the stock. Of all equities tracked, Amazon.com had the 6th highest net out-flow for the day. Amazon.com traded up $40.94 for the day and closed at $1,701.45

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Amazon.com in a report on Thursday, June 21st. JMP Securities reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Amazon.com in a report on Thursday, June 21st. Macquarie reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Amazon.com in a report on Friday, June 22nd. BidaskClub raised shares of Amazon.com from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, June 16th. Finally, DA Davidson reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $2,100.00 target price on shares of Amazon.com in a report on Thursday, June 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifty-two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $1,717.87.

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The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $820.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 373.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.40 and a beta of 1.59.

Amazon.com (NASDAQ:AMZN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 26th. The e-commerce giant reported $3.27 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.80 by $1.47. Amazon.com had a net margin of 2.04% and a return on equity of 11.77%. The firm had revenue of $51.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $49.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.48 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 42.9% compared to the same quarter last year. analysts anticipate that Amazon.com will post 12.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

In other news, CFO Brian T. Olsavsky sold 2,028 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1,587.50, for a total value of $3,219,450.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 1,781 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,827,337.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Patricia Q. Stonesifer sold 1,375 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $1,580.98, for a total transaction of $2,173,847.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,002 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,393,941.96. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 10,493 shares of company stock worth $16,569,014 in the last three months. Insiders own 16.30% of the company’s stock.

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mount Yale Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Amazon.com during the first quarter valued at $705,000. Brasada Capital Management LP raised its stake in Amazon.com by 8.2% during the first quarter. Brasada Capital Management LP now owns 512 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock valued at $741,000 after purchasing an additional 39 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new stake in Amazon.com during the first quarter valued at $290,000. Rikoon Group LLC raised its stake in Amazon.com by 10.9% during the first quarter. Rikoon Group LLC now owns 2,097 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock valued at $2,877,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Vista LLC raised its stake in Amazon.com by 47.0% during the first quarter. Private Vista LLC now owns 794 shares of the e-commerce giant’s stock valued at $1,149,000 after purchasing an additional 254 shares in the last quarter. 56.66% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Amazon.com

Amazon.com, Inc engages in the retail sale of consumer products and subscriptions in North America and internationally. The company operates through three segments: North America, International, and Amazon Web Services (AWS) segments. It sells merchandise and content purchased for resale from vendors, as well as those offered by third-party sellers through physical stores and retail Websites, such as amazon.com, amazon.ca, amazon.com.mx, amazon.com.au, amazon.com.br, amazon.cn, amazon.fr, amazon.de, amazon.in, amazon.it, amazon.co.jp, amazon.nl, amazon.es, and amazon.co.uk.

Buy Voltas; target of Rs 680: JM Financial

JM Financial's research report on Voltas

We met the Voltas management for an update on its growth outlook and the key takeaways are as follows: a) While nonseasonal rains continued to play havoc, a favorable base and market share gains may help maintain single-digit volume growth. b) The company hiked prices by 2-5% from mid-May��18 to counter rising commodity prices and a depreciating INR (40-45% import content in room ACs). c) Consumer durables products under the Voltbek JV are slated to be launched during the festive season in 2HFY19; these would be imported in CKD form for the first 18 months. d) An increase in the share of rural electrification (RE) projects to 35-40% of Voltas�� order book is likely to reduce its average execution cycle, while the launch of DDUGJY scheme phase-2 should keep inflows strong in FY19-20. e) EMP margins are likely to sustain at 7-7.5% over FY19-20 as management remains cautious when bidding for new orders in the Middle East, despite a pick-up in tendering activity.

Outlook
We maintain BUY with an SOTP-based TP of INR 680, implying 30x FY20E EPS

For all recommendations report, click here

Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts/broking houses/rating agencies on moneycontrol.com are their own, and not that of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions. Read More First Published on Jun 20, 2018 05:29 pm

Soybean prices plunge to nine-year low on US-China trade war fears

Soybean futures plunged Tuesday to their lowest in more than nine years following renewed concerns about a U.S.-China trade war.

A war of words between the two countries picked up overnight, following announcements of tit-for-tat tariffs on $34 billion worth of imports late last week. In retaliation against planned U.S. duties, Beijing intends to impose a 25 percent tariff on 545 U.S. goods, including soybeans.

Soybean futures for July delivery dropped more than 7 percent to a low of $8.415 a bushel, their lowest since March 2009, according to Thomson Reuters. They were trading near $8.64 a bushel as of 11 a.m. ET.

There are a lot of "unknowns and no confidence," said Rich Nelson, director of research at Allendale, an agricultural market research and trading firm. He added that prices could reverse just as quickly if headlines on trade changed.

With Tuesday's late morning sell-off, soybean prices are now more than 17 percent lower for the quarter and down more than 10 percent for the year.

Corn futures tumbled to their lowest price in more than six months. Wheat and oat futures fell roughly 1.4 percent and 3 percent, respectively, while rough rice futures were mildly lower.

"The dramatic drop today is soybeans because soybeans is first and foremost what the Chinese like to buy from us," said Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at The Price Futures Group.

More than half of U.S. soybeans go to China, the world's largest consumer of the beans.

If Beijing imposed a 10 percent tariff on U.S. soybeans, total American soybean exports could drop by 18 percent, according to a study for the U.S. Soybean Export Council by Purdue University agricultural economists Wally Tyner and Farzad Taheripour.

If China implemented a 30 percent tariff, total U.S. soybean exports could fall 40 percent, according to the study, released in late March. Prices would fall 2 or 5 percent over a few years, respectively, under the two different scenarios, the analysis said.

In addition to negative sentiment around the trade dispute, Flynn attributed the drop in soybean prices to dollar strength, which makes U.S. goods relatively more expensive overseas. The U.S. dollar index rose about 0.3 percent Tuesday and is up 5.5 percent this quarter.

"I think ultimately the world is going to buy our beans," Flynn said. "The demand is there. People have to eat. The decrease in price may offset the fact there might be a tariff."