The U.S. stock market is looking to end the week strong, thanks to this morning's big bank earnings. Among other names making volatile moves are retail stocks Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), Etsy Inc (NASDAQ:ETSY), and Kohl's Corporation (NYSE:KSS). Here's a quick roundup of what's moving the shares of AMZN, ETSY, and KSS.
It's been a record-setting week for Amazon, which topped out at an all-time peak of $1,305.60 earlier, after SunTrust Robinson raised its price target on the FAANG stock to $1,400 from $1,270, saying the e-commerce concern was the clear winner this holiday season, and that management has created "sustainable competitive advantages."
After surging nearly 56% in 2017, AMZN stock is up 11.5% so far this year, last seen trading 2.2% higher at $1,304.28, and on track for a ninth straight daily win -- its longest win streak in at least a year. Not surprisingly, most analysts are already on the bullish bandwagon, with several this week also issuing record-high Amazon price targets.
Etsy stock has plunged 5.4% to trade at $19.45 -- pacing for its worst session since May -- after Morgan Stanley downgraded the online retailer to "underweight," saying the shares look pricey relative to their peers, and could be negatively impacted by competition from Amazon. However, the brokerage firm boosted its ETSY price target to $17 from $13.50, saying the company should benefit from the GOP tax overhaul.
More broadly, Etsy has still more than doubled from its early March single-digit lows, with today's pullback being contained by the stock's 10-week moving average -- a trendline that helped usher the shares higher from early May through late September.
Should ETSY resume its longer-term trend, short sellers may be encouraged to cover their bearish positions. Short interest shot up 45% in the two most recent reporting periods to 3.90 million shares.
Kohl's stock shot to $65.06 earlier -- its highest mark since July 2015 -- and was last seen trading up 3.8% at $63.42. Underscoring this impressive price action, KSS shares are set to close the week out with a 16.8% gain, their biggest weekly advance since November 2016.
Boosting the security is stronger-than-expected holiday sales data from the National Retail Federation, as well as a round of bullish brokerage attention. For starters, J.P. Morgan Securities upgraded KSS stock to "overweight" from "neutral," and boosted its price target to $72 -- territory not charted since May 2015 -- saying it represents "a rare large cap 'value' idea in consumer." Likewise, RBC raised its rating on Kohl's stock to "sector perform" from "underperform," and lifted its price target by more than 50%, to $60 from $39.
With Kohl's now boasting a nearly 54% year-over-year advance, more upbeat analyst notes could come down the pike. Heading into today's trading, nine of 14 brokerages maintained a "hold" or "strong sell" rating, while the average 12-month price target of $57.83 stands at a discount to current trading levels.