Amazon to Hire 75,000 More Employees to Handle Soaring Online Orders, Stock Rallies 6%
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Amazon.Com Inc.’s (AMZN) shares rose after the world’s largest online retailer said it was adding another 75,000 workers as the coronavirus-induced lockdown implemented in many countries has pushed consumer demand for online orders through the roof.
Shares soared over 6% after Amazon said on Monday that it was advertising the 75,000 jobs after filling the 100,000 positions it had announced earlier.
Moreover, Amazon said it expects to spend more than $500 million globally to increase wages for workers during the pandemic, up from a previous announcement of $350 million.
"We know many people have been economically impacted as jobs in areas like hospitality, restaurants and travel are lost or furloughed as part of this crisis and we welcome anyone out of work to join us at Amazon until things return to normal and their past employer is able to bring them back," Amazon said in a blog post.
Following the news, five-star analyst John Blackledge at Cowen & Co., reiterated his Buy rating and $2,700 price target for Amazon, citing an enormous demand surge in March due to the pandemic effectively creating a "Prime Day in March". Blackledge said shoppers who were forced to stay home and who perhaps may have previously been reluctant to use the system, were drawn to the ecosystem.
Overall, Wall Street analysts share Blackledge’s bullish outlook. Out of the 39 Wall Street analysts covering the stock in the last three months, 38 have Buys and 1 has a Hold rating adding up to a Strong Buy consensus rating. The $2,429.97 average price target implies a 12% potential gain in the shares in the coming 12 months. (See Amazon stock analysis on TipRanks).
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