Amazon Leads Dow Jones Stocks After Stellar Earnings Report
Amazon stock is higher Friday after the e-commerce and cloud giant reported strong Q3 earnings and Wall Street sees even more upside ahead. Here's why.


Amazon (AMZN) stock is the best Dow Jones stock Friday after the world's largest e-commerce company beat top- and bottom-line expectations for its third quarter.
In the three months ended September 30, Amazon's revenue increased 11% year over year to $158.9 billion, boosted by 19.1% growth in its Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud segment to $27.5 billion and an 18.8% rise in Advertising sales to $14.3 billion. Its earnings per share (EPS) were up 52.1% from the year-ago period to $1.43.
"As we get into the holiday season, we're excited about what we have in store for customers," said Amazon CEO Andy Jassy in a statement. "We kicked off the holiday season with our biggest-ever Prime Big Deal Days and the launch of an all-new Kindle lineup that is significantly outperforming our expectations."

Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free E-Newsletters
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more - straight to your e-mail.
Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice - straight to your e-mail.
The executive added that there's a lot in the hopper for Amazon, too, including its NFL Black Friday game and Election Day coverage with Brian Williams on Prime Video. Jassy also said the company has 100 new cloud infrastructure and artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities that will be revealed at Amazon's AWS re:Invent the week after Thanksgiving.
The headline results beat analysts' expectations. Wall Street was anticipating total revenue of $157.2 billion and earnings of $1.14 per share, according to CNBC. Meanwhile, advertising matched expectations of $14.3 billion and AWS revenue came up just shy of the $27.5 billion estimate.
For the fourth quarter, Amazon said it expects to achieve revenue in the range of $181.5 billion to $188.5 billion, representing growth of 7% to 11% from the year-ago period. The midpoint of this range, $185 billion, is slightly below analysts forecast for Q4 revenue of $186.2 billion.
Is Amazon stock a buy, sell or hold?
Wall Street is bullish on the Magnificent 7 stock and for good reason. Amazon is up 31% for the year to date, easily outperforming the S&P 500's 21% gain.
According to S&P Global Market Intelligence, the average analyst target price for the consumer discretionary stock is $227.86, representing implied upside of more than 14% to current levels. Additionally, the consensus recommendation is a Strong Buy.
Financial services firm Stifel is one of the more bullish outfits on AMZN stock with a Buy rating and $245 price target.
"Amazon is one of the primary beneficiaries of Covid given accelerated e-commerce sales growth and Prime membership adoption, as well as the digital transformation that will accelerate cloud services adoption, which we expect to see over a longer time frame," says Stifel analyst Mark Kelley.
And as a leader in these two rapidly growing industries, "we believe Amazon remains well positioned in a recovery scenario given cloud services, marketing services and certain e-commerce categories and geographies are still in the early phases of development."
Related Content
Profit and prosper with the best of Kiplinger's advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and much more. Delivered daily. Enter your email in the box and click Sign Me Up.

Joey Solitro is a freelance financial journalist at Kiplinger with more than a decade of experience. A longtime equity analyst, Joey has covered a range of industries for media outlets including The Motley Fool, Seeking Alpha, Market Realist, and TipRanks. Joey holds a bachelor's degree in business administration.
-
Six Changes Coming to Social Security in 2026
Big changes are coming to Social Security in the year ahead, impacting everything from the size of your benefit check to your full retirement age. Here's what you need to know.
-
Don't Be a Sucker: The Truth About Guarantor and Cosigner Agreements
There are significant financial and relationship risks involved if you agree to be a cosigner or guarantor. Make sure you perform your due diligence, and know exactly what you're getting into, before agreeing to such a commitment.
-
Don't Be a Sucker: The Truth About Guarantor and Cosigner Agreements
There are significant financial and relationship risks involved if you agree to be a cosigner or guarantor. Make sure you perform your due diligence, and know exactly what you're getting into, before agreeing to such a commitment.
-
The Hidden Risk Lurking in Most Retirement Plans: Human Behavior
What's one of the differences between a good financial adviser and a great one? The ability to use behavioral coaching to guide clients away from emotional decision-making and toward retirement success.
-
Addressing Your Clients' Emotional Side: Communication Techniques for Financial Advisers
Rather than focusing only on financial plans, you can better serve your clients — and grow your business — by learning what to say and do when a client gets anxious or emotional.
-
Stocks Struggle Ahead of Busy Fed Week: Stock Market Today
The minutes from the July Fed meeting will be released Wednesday, while Chair Powell will deliver a key speech at Jackson Hole on Friday.
-
Is Crypto Investing Coming to a Credit Union Near You?
Credit unions are getting in on crypto investing through partnerships with third-party platforms, but the risks to investors still apply.
-
Seven Hidden Downsides of Dividend Investing, From a Financial Adviser
Dividend investing could be draining your wealth with unexpected costs and limited growth potential. Here are some downsides, along with smarter strategies to take control of your retirement income.
-
How to Position Your Business for a Lucrative Exit Despite Private Equity's Slowdown
As private equity firms seek strongly performing companies, crafting a narrative about your business' high-quality assets and future opportunities can make a lucrative sale possible.
-
Don't Regret Buying a Home: An Expert Guide to Navigating Today's Tough Housing Market
Whether you're a first-time buyer, want to upsize/downsize or move closer to work or family, it's critical to stay within your budget and have an emergency fund.