Amazon.com Inc (AMZN) said on Friday that it intended to add 10,000 additional jobs in Bellevue, Washington during the upcoming few years.
Amazon shares closed lower for a second consecutive trading session on NASDAQ on Friday. The stock went down 2.18% ($73.38) to $3,294.62, after touching an intraday low at $3,111.13, or a price level not seen since August 12th ($3,104.00).
Shares of Amazon.com Inc have risen 78.30% so far in 2020 compared with a 6.07% gain for the benchmark index, S&P 500 (SPX).
In 2019, Amazon’s stock went up 23.03%, thus, it underperformed the S&P 500, which registered a 28.88% gain.
Previously, the e-commerce giant had announced plans to create 15,000 jobs in Bellevue, which is located some 16 kilometers away from the company’s headquarters in Seattle.
In April and May, Amazon looked to hire staff for 175,000 job positions (from warehouse workers to delivery drivers) in order to respond to a spike in online orders amid COVID-19 lockdown restrictions.
Analyst stock price forecast and recommendation
According to CNN Money, the 44 analysts, offering 12-month forecasts regarding Amazon.com Inc’s stock price, have a median target of $3,700.00, with a high estimate of $4,200.00 and a low estimate of $2,646.00. The median estimate represents a 12.30% upside compared to the closing price of $3,294.62 on September 4th.
The same media also reported that at least 40 out of 47 surveyed investment analysts had rated Amazon.com Inc’s stock as “Buy”, while 4 – as “Hold”. On the other hand, 1 analyst had recommended selling the stock.