Amazon's Stock Could Rocket Another 35%, Analyst Says

Amazon.com Inc.'s stock could rocket more than 30% from current, based on the potential of the e-commerce giant's burgeoning advertising business, said analyst Daniel Salmon at BMO Capital Markets. Salmon reiterated his outperform rating while raising his price target to $1,200, which is 35% above Monday's record closing price of $891.51. He said Amazon is his new top pick in the media and internet space, given the "significant emerging opportunity" in advertising. He believes Amazon's ad business will reach $3.5 billion in revenue this year, up 65% from last year, and could eventually be worth about $150 billion as it is poised to take market share from Alphabet Inc.'s Google and Facebook Inc. . "A key point of differentiation for Amazon is the massive amount of consumer purchase data it possesses," Salmon wrote in a note to clients. "We believe this large repository of consumer purchase data offers tremendous targeting and re-targeting opportunities for brands." The stock, which has closed at record highs the past four sessions, slipped 0.2% in premarket trade. It has soared 19% year to date through Monday, while the S&P 500 has gained 5.4%.