Whole Foods Market (WFM) is “only growing single digits” and “also puts a dent” into Amazon.com’s (AMZN) near-term profitability, Jefferies analyst Brent Thill tells investors in a research note.
To reflect the acquisition close, the analyst lowered his FY17 earnings per share estimate for Amazon to $2.48 from $3.68 and FY18 estimate to $7.38 from $10.30. Thill also raised his FY17 revenue estimate to $177B from $171B and FY18 revenue to $228B from $213B. Despite the lowered earnings estimates, the analyst thinks the Whole Foods acquisition “presents a series of attractive call options” for other parts of the Amazon business, including fulfillment, Fresh, consumer data and Echo devices.
He keeps a Buy rating on Amazon with a $1,250 price target. The stock closed yesterday up $8.04 to $954.06.
No Comments