Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd decreased its Amazon holdings by 19.7% during the fourth quarter, selling 236,176 shares and leaving the firm with 965,647 shares, according to Holdings Channel.com. The position, valued at $223.3 million at the time of the pension fund's most recent Securities and Exchange Commission filing, represents approximately 3.9% of its investment portfolio and ranks as its sixth-largest holding.
The pension fund's reduction contrasts with broader institutional appetite for Amazon stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake worth $27.4 billion in the second quarter, while Nuveen LLC initiated a $11.7 billion position in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group increased its Amazon holdings by 21.3% during the first quarter, adding over 10 million shares to bring its total stake to nearly 58 million shares valued at $11 billion. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its position by 11.3% in the third quarter, purchasing an additional 9.6 million shares and bringing its total holdings to over 94 million shares worth $20.7 billion.
Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC saw its stake surge dramatically, expanding by more than 22,000% in the second quarter through the purchase of 12.1 million shares, resulting in a position valued at $2.67 billion. Collectively, hedge funds and institutional investors own 72.2% of Amazon's outstanding stock.
Amazon shares closed Friday at $268.38, up 1.3% on the day. The company carries a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27 and maintains a market capitalization of $2.89 trillion. Its 50-day moving average stands at $223.63, with a 200-day average of $227.40. Over the past year, the stock has traded between a low of $183.85 and a high of $273.88.
Recent corporate developments have drawn analyst attention. The company reported first-quarter results that beat both revenue and earnings expectations, with its cloud division accelerating growth and achieving record margins. The U.S. Department of Defense signed agreements incorporating Amazon Web Services to run artificial intelligence tools on classified networks. Multiple analysts have raised price targets, with firms including Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, Canaccord, and Bank of America issuing new targets above $300 per share.
AWS expanded partnerships including integrations with OpenAI and launched new artificial intelligence tools. Amazon's Trainium chip business has demonstrated revenue commitments that position the company as an artificial intelligence hardware supplier. However, management flagged rising memory and chip costs alongside a substantial artificial intelligence capital expenditure program that is pressuring free cash flow generation.
Among recent analyst actions, Wolfe Research reaffirmed an outperform rating with a $320 price target, while Wells Fargo maintained an overweight rating and raised its target to $313. Canaccord Genuity increased its price target from $300 to $330 with a buy rating. Argus reiterated a buy rating and set a $325 target. Wedbush lowered its target from $340 to $300 while maintaining an outperform rating. Across Wall Street, one analyst has assigned a Strong Buy rating, fifty-five have given Buy ratings, and three have issued Hold ratings, producing a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with an average price target of $310.25.
Company insiders have engaged in recent stock transactions. David Zapolsky, senior vice president, sold 10,649 shares on February 24th at an average price of $205.43, reducing his direct ownership stake by 20.54%. CEO Douglas J. Herrington sold 20,500 shares on April 14th at $245 per share under a pre-arranged trading plan, representing a 3.94% reduction in his holdings. Over the preceding 90 days, insiders sold 128,035 shares worth $28.8 million. Corporate insiders collectively own 8.9% of outstanding shares.
