We recently published a list of 8 Best Machine Learning Stocks to Buy According to Hedge Funds. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) stands against other best machine learning stocks to buy according to hedge funds.
Earlier this month, the president of Potomac Wealth Advisors, Mark Avallone, discussed the tech sector’s investment potential. We talked about his sentiment in more detail in one of our other articles, 12 Best NASDAQ Stocks To Buy in 2025. Here’s an excerpt from it:
“He noted that market rates have surged to all-time highs, with a significant increase of 1,800 points since October 2023. Avallone emphasizes that tech stocks, particularly cash-flowing mega-cap and large-cap companies, have shown resilience against rising rates, attributing this to improved operational efficiencies and ongoing technology spending even in a slowing economy.”
Just like Avallone, several analysts hold a positive outlook for tech stocks as we go into 2025. Daniel Ives, Global Head of Technology Research at Wedbush Securities, thinks that the AI revolution is driving this strength in tech. On January 13, he appeared on CNBC and discussed the tech sector in light of rising interest rates and a strengthening dollar. He noted that the 10-year Treasury yield is currently at 4.75%, which is exerting pressure on tech stocks. Despite this, Ives expressed optimism about the sector’s potential for growth and suggested that the current environment presents opportunities to invest in leading companies. He emphasized that capital expenditures are robust on the consumer side and indicate stronger-than-expected earnings ahead. Ives believes that we are only halfway through the bull market, which he views as a positive sign for tech stocks moving forward.
Ives discussed Palantir Technologies, which has faced selling pressure despite being a top S&P 500 performer last year. He warned that overlooking it due to high valuation could mean missing key market opportunities, similar to Oracle and Salesforce, especially with $2 trillion in expected AI capital expenditures. Ives also highlighted the impact of a rising dollar on tech, particularly Apple’s vulnerability, while remaining bullish on the sector. He emphasized the need for diversification, citing Microsoft and NVIDIA as indicators for AI growth.
His optimism about the tech sector highlights opportunities as investors navigate this landscape.
Methodology
We first sifted through ETFs, online rankings, and internet lists to compile a list of the top ML stocks. We then selected the 8 stocks that were the most popular among elite hedge funds and that analysts were bullish on. The stocks are ranked in ascending order of the number of hedge funds that have stakes in them, as of Q3 2024. The hedge fund data was sourced from Insider Monkey’s database which tracks the moves of over 900 elite money managers.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 275% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 150 percentage points (see more details here).
A customer entering an internet retail store, illustrating the convenience of online shopping.
Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN)
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 286
Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is a retail and cloud computing giant that offers a vast selection of products through its online and physical stores. It’s also a leader in cloud services through its Amazon Web Services (AWS) platform and develops its own line of devices like Kindle and Echo.
Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Deepak Mathivanan raised the stock’s price target from $240 to $270 while maintaining an Overweight rating. He anticipates a positive outlook for internet stocks in 2025, with growth in areas like digital advertising, online shopping, and mobility. He emphasized the accelerating pace of advancements in AI, robotics, and other technologies. Amazon.com Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) was a top pick due to its strong position in AI development.
At CES 2025, Amazon Ads unveiled an AI-powered SQL generator, which streamlines audience creation within its Marketing Cloud. This tool allows advertisers to define their target audience using natural language, which reduces query development time. Amazon Ads continues to use AI and ML to drive growth. The company has introduced tools like a GenAI-powered video generator, which enables advertisers to create compelling video ads using a single product image. These AI tools should drive advertiser growth and improve ROI for Amazon Ads.
Alphyn Capital Management recently highlighted that strong execution, efficiency gains, and AI investment are driving revenue growth and profitability for Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN). It stated the following regarding the company in its Q4 2024 investor letter:
“Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) continues to demonstrate how a massive balance sheet, combined with a relentless focus on customer satisfaction and first-principles thinking, can drive sustainable cash flow growth. Recent earnings highlight strong execution across multiple fronts. At its core, Amazon pursues what customers value most: faster, cheaper delivery. This quarter, 40 million users enjoyed free same-day shipping, reflecting management’s sizable investments in regional logistics. These moves have reduced service costs, supported margin expansion, and set the stage for continued improvements with further robotics integration.
Amazon has now achieved margin gains in its international operations, making that segment profitable. By emphasizing improvements on the “intake” side of the supply chain and leveraging regional logistics, the company is laying the groundwork for more efficiencies ahead. Meanwhile, Amazon’s advertising business saw $14.3 billion in revenue, up 19% year-over-year, a clear example of the company’s success in forging new, high-margin revenue streams. Amazon Web Services and AI-related offerings also grew 19%, pushing quarterly revenues near $30 billion. Management spent $75 billion in capex this year, mainly for AI infrastructure, which will increase to $90 billion next year. While those numbers look daunting, I have confidence in the company’s ability to balance aggressive growth with disciplined returns, given Amazon’s decades-long track record of smart capital allocation. Amazon has a ruthless focus on “what works,” for example, while shutting down its project (with JP Morgan and Berkshire) to change healthcare service proved too complex, it pivoted to high-velocity pharmacy deliveries, leveraging its logistics expertise.
Of course, AI is all the rage right now, and we will eventually find out how much of this is hype. For now, Amazon’s AI initiatives are already producing multibillion-dollar revenues and growing at triple the rate of AWS when it was at a similar stage.”
Overall, AMZN ranks 1st on our list of best machine learning stocks to buy according to hedge funds. While we acknowledge the growth potential of AMZN, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold great promise for delivering high returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than AMZN but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.