Amazon stock competes to join elite four-figure club
Not quite. Online retail giant Amazon (AMZN) saw its stock approach $1,000 in Friday trading, but then retreat to just shy of $996. Another leading technology stock bearing down on four figures, Google parent Alphabet (GOOG) wasn't far behind, closing at slightly over $971.
Amazon shares came tantalizingly close in the morning, reaching a little above $998, before fading. The company's stock is benefiting from good news lately, much of it flowing at the expense of traditional retailers. Store chains like Macy's (M) have posted poor earnings and moved to shutter stores, while Amazon's results were strong, with first quarter revenue up 23 percent.
Amazon's core ecommerce business propelled the sales growth, in addition to its cloud computing service, Amazon Web Services. It also booked its eighth consecutive profitable quarter. Meanwhile, it has introduced a digital assistant and even physical bookstores.
Google is benefiting from the recent unveiling of a new tool, called Google Attribution, that aims to tell advertisers the likelihood their ads will result in purchases. The internet giant also revealed that it has data on 70 percent of all U.S. credit card transactions, which bolsters its ability to target relevant ads to customers.
Of course, Warren Buffett's conglomerate, Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A), is far ahead of them both. At $247,996 per share, it is the most expensive stock of all time.
Only four stocks on U.S. exchanges are above $1,000. Bespoke Investment Group compiled the list of issuers, which must have with market values $500 million that trade more than 250 shares daily. Aside from Berkshire, they are homebuilder NVR (NVR), online booking service Priceline (PCLN) and Seaboard (SEB), a diversified company involved in pork and poultry production, as well as ocean transportation.
