Ahead of a holiday shopping season analysts expect to set e-commerce records, Amazon said Thursday it will hire 250,000 seasonal workers. Amazon stock, meanwhile, fell Thursday for a seventh straight trading day.
The tech giant said in a blog post that it is hiring for the seasonal roles across its fulfillment and transportation operations in the U.S.
The hiring total is flat from what Amazon announced for the 2023 season. Analysts often use Amazon's holiday hiring projections as an indicator for the company's expectations for the all-important November and December shopping period.
On the stock market today, Amazon stock slipped 1.5% to close at 181.96. Amazon stock has fallen for seven consecutive trading days. That's the longest losing streak for Amazon since September 2023, according to Dow Jones Market Data.
Monitoring Holiday Demand
Seasonal employees earn at least $18 per hour and have access to benefits such as health care starting with their first day on the job, according to Amazon's blog post.
Separately, Amazon published details Thursday on its 48-hour Prime Big Deal Days discount shopping event, starting Oct. 8.
Pitched by the company as a way to get a head start on holiday shopping, Amazon said it will offer discounts up to 55% on some Amazon devices, 55% on home products and 50% on some apparel, among other deals.
Overall, forecasters expect holiday-related e-commerce spending to accelerate this year. Adobe projects U.S. online sales to reach $240.8 billion from Nov. 1 through Dec. 31, up 8.4% from 2023. That was also stronger than the 4.9% year-over-year growth in the same period last year.
Amazon Stock Breaks Below 21-Day Line
Meanwhile, Amazon stock is on a downtrend. Shares have fallen seven straight trading days and roughly 6.5% total since Sept. 24.
Amazon broke below its 21-day moving average with Thursday's action.
Prior to its current slump, Amazon had nearly bounced back from a sell-off that followed its second quarter earnings report in August. Overall, Amazon has formed a consolidation pattern with a 201.20 buy point, according to MarketSurge.
In a note to clients Thursday, Morgan Stanley analysts said they expect some "tactical risks" to Amazon's upcoming guidance for fourth quarter adjusted earnings. But the analyst said they would be "buyers on weakness into 2025."
Morgan Stanley rates Amazon stock a buy with a price target of 210.
"We see Amazon's high and growing focus on lower-priced, lower-margin essentials driving merchandise margin pressure … which is holding back the near-term
slope of its North America retail profit ramp," Morgan Stanley analyst Brian Nowak wrote to clients. "Expected discounting in a competitive holiday season (and picky discretionary consumer) create further near-term uncertainty."
