Tag Archives: amzn

Amazon, Alphabet Extend Breakouts Ahead Of Earnings

Two Internet bigwigs — Amazon ( AMZN ) and Google parent Alphabet ( GOOGL ) — are extending their breakouts Friday ahead of both companies’ first-quarter earnings reports next week. Alphabet shares continued a slight ascent into the lower end of buy range following a breakout from a cup-with-handle base with 777.41 buy point, and remain well above their 50-day and 200-day lines. Alphabet rose 0.3% to 778 on the stock market today  in afternoon trade. The company will report Q1 results on April 21 after the close. IBD’s Take: How healthy are Alphabet and Amazon stocks — and how do they compare vs. rivals? Find out at IBD Stock Checkup Amazon edged higher Friday afternoon, remaining solidly in buy territory after clearing a 603.34 buy point from a double-bottom-with-handle base at the start of the week. The stock is 10% off its Dec. 29 high of 696.44. Expect the e-commerce giant to report Q1 earnings after market close on April 28. Both stocks are trading in below-average volume Friday. In other FANG news, Facebook ( FB ) is slipping toward its 50-day line as it droops out of a cup-with-handle base. Facebook fell 1.1% intraday. And Netflix ( NFLX ) shares aren’t budging much so far Friday, remaining above their 200-day level as they form a cup-shaped base. Netflix reports earnings on Monday. RELATED: Netflix, Amazon Are Into Indies Now — And That’s Good For Theaters Alphabet, Microsoft Join Amazon As Market Leaders; Breakout Soon? Apple, Facebook, Nike, Amazon Lead Morgan Stanley’s 3-Year Picks

Obama Backs Set-Top TV Change; Critics Say It’s Too Google-Friendly

Phone and cable TV companies slammed the White House after President Obama signaled his support for a regulatory proposal to open up the set-top box market to more competition, a move that critics say is too friendly for companies such as  Alphabet ’s ( GOOGL ) Google and  Apple ( AAPL ), benefiting them at the expense of pay-TV providers. AT&T ( T ), Comcast ( CMCSA ) and other pay-TV players have opposed the proposal. Tom Wheeler, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, says he plans to make it easier for consumers to switch from pay-TV companies’ set-top boxes leased monthly to new devices sold on a retail basis by consumer electronics or Internet companies. “Instead of spending nearly $1,000 over four years to lease a set of behind-the-times boxes, American families will have options to own a device for much less money that will integrate everything they want,” said the White House Council of Economic Advisers in a blog post . Obama is expected to file comments with the FCC supporting Wheeler’s proposal. “The Google proposal the White House endorsed today will box consumers into yesterday’s technology and impede the innovation consumers so desperately want,” said the Future of TV Coalition, a lobbying group formed by cable TV companies, programmers and others. The FCC has three Democratic and two Republican members. Walter McCormick, president of the USTelecom industry trade group, said in a statement: “The legitimacy of this rule-making proceeding has now been irreparably compromised.” Potential new suppliers such as Apple ,  Google or Amazon.com ( AMZN ) would likely provide their own programming guide to consumers, analysts say. One worry for pay-TV firms is losing the ability to collect viewership data, the key for targeted advertising . Google, critics say, aims to swap its own advertising for the local ads sold by cable TV companies. Under the new set-top rules, the FCC says that only pay-TV subscribers will gain access to programming, and that copyright protections will be preserved. The FCC could clear a path for Apple, which reportedly shelved plans for an Internet video service after negotiations with programmers stalled.

PayPal Credit Expanding Across The Pond

In a bid to capture even more of the world’s digital wallet, the company has announced the first overseas expansion of its PayPal ( PYPL ) Credit business — essentially lending money to consumers at checkout. The move, announced Wednesday, will add pressure in the United Kingdom (where the feature was rolled out) to other payments options — such as Amazon.com ( AMZN ) and its offering. PayPal Credit will offer 0% interest during the first four months for purchase amounts of 150 British pounds and higher, afterward subject to the standard variable interest rate, which is 17.9% at publication time. Limits will depend on each person’s credit, which will take about 10 minutes. PayPal also faces competitive pressures from relatively new entrants into the digital wallet sector, Google with its Android Pay, and Apple ( AAPL ) Pay. Google is a unit of Alphabet ( GOOGL ). PayPal stock fell a fraction to 38.64 on the stock market today . The stock is finding support at its 50-day moving average, a positive move just when the stock needed one. Volume, though, has been lackluster as shares bounce back. The stock is still below a potential buy point. The company has an IBD Composite Rating of 93, where 99 is the highest. The U.K. is PayPal’s second largest market outside of the U.S., according to Mashable , which notes that of nearly 180 million active customer accounts, 22 million are located in the United Kingdom. The program began in 2014 as a pilot with limited availability. The marketing messaging the company is using — “ the future of money ” — is consistent with its global advertising push after its spinoff from eBay ( EBAY ) in 2015. Thus far the campaign has included the firm’s first-ever Super Bowl ad.