tl;dr
Resilient consumers have not only helped the American economy rebound with a vengeance; they've also been a force in shaping the winners and losers of the sprawling U.S. logistics industry. New internal data from Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) reportedly shows the e-commerce behemoth set to take hold of the a...
Resilient consumers have not only helped the American economy rebound with a vengeance; they've also been a force in shaping the winners and losers of the sprawling U.S. logistics industry. New internal data from Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) reportedly shows the e-commerce behemoth set to take hold of the annual delivery crown for the first time, shipping a total of 4.8B packages in the U.S. before Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and predicting it will deliver about 5.9B by the end of 2023. It's closest rival UPS (NYSE:UPS) only handled around 3.4B parcels domestically in the first nine months of the year, and said its volume in 2023 is unlikely to exceed last year's 5.3B. FedEx's (NYSE:FDX) domestic parcel volume is even further behind, and both companies even include packages they hand off to the U.S. Postal Service for final delivery.
It wasn't long ago that logistics leaders thought the idea of a serious Amazon (AMZN) competitor was a pipe dream. In 2016, FedEx (FDX) CEO Fred Smith even called such an idea "fantastical," saying concerns about industry disruption were overblown. "In all likelihood, the primary deliverers of e-commerce shipments for the foreseeable future will be UPS, the U.S. Postal Service, and FedEx," he declared in a conference call with analysts. Three years later, in 2019, FedEx and Amazon went through a very public divorce as the latter continued to scale its business and invest in its own delivery service. Amazon still works with UPS, but it only constitutes a minority of its operations, or about 11% of revenue. Helping Amazon take the lead were a number of innovations including flex drivers, same-day delivery centers, warehouse robots, and more recently, AI. Walmart (NYSE:WMT) and Target (NYSE:TGT) are also speeding up deliveries by fulfilling orders closer to customers, but with its store-less format, Amazon has been nimble and still remains the clear industry leader. While Amazon has shown its strength in residential delivery, it's core strength is anchored in one-way operations and its existing network. That may already be changing as it expands its global reach and leverages other providers to deliver the same level of service or things like pick-up returns. "Earlier fears of big cancellation in Prime membership due to price hikes have been proved wrong," SA analyst Bluesea Research noted in Amazon: Fear Of Saturated Market Is Overhyped. "Amazon's subscription business is showing steady growth and the launch of new services also increases the growth runway for the subscription business."
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Amazon.com Inc is a leading multinational technology company in the e-commerce, cloud computing, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence sectors. The company's market capitalization stands at 1.526 billion, with a stock price of $77.35. The stock has shown a 1.91% increase, with a high of $157.93 and a low of $53.95 over the past year. Market sentiment appears positive, with Amazon being recognized as one of the most influential economic and cultural forces globally, and the world's most valuable brand. However, it is important to note potential risks and uncertainties associated with market performance, as past behavior may not always be indicative of future trends.
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United Parcel Service Inc is a major player in the trucking and courier services industry, with a market cap of $127.44 billion. The stock currently has a P/E ratio of 15.16, which is slightly below the industry average of 16. This could indicate that the stock is currently undervalued. The company has a healthy profit margin of 9.87% and a return on equity of 108.07%, suggesting efficient use of shareholder funds. The stock has a relatively low beta of 0.0919, indicating lower volatility compared to the overall market. Despite these positive financial metrics, the stock has seen a decline of 0.557% recently, and the Relative Strength Index (RSI) is also indicating a bearish trend. This could be a cause for concern for investors. It's important to note that past performance is not always indicative of future results, and investors should carefully consider these potential risks before making any investment decisions.
More about FedEx Corporation
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More about Walmart Inc
Walmart Inc. is a leading American multinational retail corporation in the trade and services sector, specifically in the retail-variety stores industry. With a market capitalization of $421.96 billion, the stock is currently trading at $237.11, with a 52-week high of $164.05. The stock has shown a 6% increase in the last quarter and has a dividend yield of 2.27%. The market sentiment for Walmart Inc. is cautiously bullish, with a Relative Strength Index (RSI) of 26.13 and a Bollinger Bands indicator of 0.0255, suggesting potential volatility and uncertainty in the near future. Investors should closely monitor support and resistance levels, as well as potential breakouts and head and shoulders patterns, to assess the stock's performance and make informed decisions.
More about Target Corporation
Target Corporation, a retail corporation, has a market cap of $60,688,646,000 and a current stock price of $135.33. The stock has shown a 1-year change of 16.75% and a 52-week high/low of $231.76 and $106.88, respectively. With a P/E ratio of 4.34 and a dividend yield of 3.64%, the company's performance reflects a slightly bearish trend with a negative change of 4.2%. The market sentiment towards Target Corporation appears to be cautious, with potential downside risks to consider.
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