Amazon.com AMZN.O hopes to tempt U.S. shoppers on Tuesday to open inflation-thinned wallets by offering deeper discounts on a wide range of goods and services during this year’s “Prime Day” 48-hour shopping event, including its first-ever travel discounts.
A year of inflation has lifted mortgage rates, rents and food prices for consumers ahead of Prime Day, which falls on July 11-12 this year.
CFRA Research analyst Arun Sundaram said Amazon’s U.S. Prime Day discounts this year are mostly deeper than in previous years. The online retailer is marking 60 per cent off Gap GPS.N clothing, 50 per cent off on Sony headphones and 40 per cent off Peloton PTON.O exercise bikes, according to Bank of America.
Amazon Prime members can also save up to 40 per cent on items such as Sherpani bags and ZOA Energy drinks, by checking out using “Buy with Prime,” directly from Amazon’s third-party merchants and sellers outside of Amazon.com.
The company in January said websites using Buy with Prime are seeing a 25 per cent conversion rate increase. The feature offers an additional revenue stream for the e-retailer during Prime Day as it collects fulfillment, payment process and service fees during a time when shoppers are slowing discretionary spending.
Last year, U.S. online sales during Amazon’s Prime Day shopping event reached nearly $12 billion, up 8.5 per cent from the previous year, as inflation-hit Americans pounced on discounted essentials and electronics, according to Adobe, which tracks online spending.
Michael Ashley Schulman, chief investment officer at Running Point Capital Advisors, said Amazon Prime sales growth will be slower this year, as many American consumers still have post-pandemic shopping fatigue and are cautious about “abusing their wallets.”
They “are looking to spend more on experiences, travel, and entertainment,” Schulman added. Running Point Capital Advisors has exposure to Amazon through Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs), among others.
He predicted Prime Day 2023 may add about $4 billion to $6 billion of incremental revenue for Amazon, up 10 per cent to 16 per cent from last year, as shoppers also take advantage of discounts for everyday staples like pantry items, toiletries, and cleaning supplies.
Criteo’s CRTO.O Global Chief Revenue Officer Brian Gleason said such discounts may have more appeal to shoppers in a more difficult economy.
Amazon is also offering its first-ever Prime Day travel discounts this year, partnering with travel booking site Priceline to offer an additional 20 per cent off on Priceline’s Hotel Express deals, which offers 60 per cent off hotels.
Prime Day is expected to encounter stiff competition from other retailers like Walmart WMT.N which is offering extensive deals during its “Plus Week.” Geared to Walmart + members, Plus Week began on Monday.
Home electronics chain Best Buy is also giving out more discounts through its “Black Friday in July” savings event, which also began on Monday.
“This week is turned into a pretty major shopping event, similar to the likes of Black Friday and Cyber Monday,” Sundaram said, adding that all retailers are fighting over market share.
Bank of America projects this year’s Prime Day sales event will generate $12 billion in gross merchandise value (GMV) for Amazon in the United States, up 12 per cent on year-over-year basis.
Amazon plans yet another Prime sales event this year, according to screenshots of its seller notification platform seen by Reuters. The company has notified its marketplace vendors to submit deals for a “Prime Fall Deal Event” that will begin in the fourth quarter. The exact date was unclear, and Amazon had no comment on the fall event. Last year’s sale was Oct. 11 and 12.
(Reporting by Granth Vanaik and Ananya Mariam Rajesh in Bengaluru. Additional reporting by Arriana McLymore in New York City; Editing by David Gregorio)
TORONTO – Cineplex Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter compared with a profit a year ago as it was hit by a fine for deceptive marketing practices imposed by the Competition Tribunal.
The movie theatre company says it lost $24.7 million or 39 cents per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with a profit of $29.7 million or 40 cents per diluted share a year earlier.
The results in the most recent quarter included a $39.2-million provision related to the Competition Tribunal decision, which Cineplex is appealing.
The Competition Bureau accused the company of misleading theatregoers by not immediately presenting them with the full price of a movie ticket when they purchased seats online, a view the company has rejected.
Revenue for the quarter totalled $395.6 million, down from $414.5 million in the same quarter last year, while theatre attendance totalled 13.3 million for the quarter compared with nearly 15.7 million a year earlier.
Box office revenue per patron in the quarter climbed to $13.19 compared with $12 in the same quarter last year, while concession revenue per patron amounted to $9.85, up from $8.44 a year ago.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.
TORONTO – Restaurant Brands International Inc. reported net income of US$357 million for its third quarter, down from US$364 million in the same quarter last year.
The company, which keeps its books in U.S. dollars, says its profit amounted to 79 cents US per diluted share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with 79 cents US per diluted share a year earlier.
Revenue for the parent company of Tim Hortons, Burger King, Popeyes and Firehouse Subs, totalled US$2.29 billion, up from US$1.84 billion in the same quarter last year.
Consolidated comparable sales were up 0.3 per cent.
On an adjusted basis, Restaurant Brands says it earned 93 cents US per diluted share in its latest quarter, up from an adjusted profit of 90 cents US per diluted share a year earlier.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 95 cents US per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
ST. JOHN’S, N.L. – Fortis Inc. reported a third-quarter profit of $420 million, up from $394 million in the same quarter last year.
The electric and gas utility says the profit amounted to 85 cents per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30, up from 81 cents per share a year earlier.
Fortis says the increase was driven by rate base growth across its utilities, and strong earnings in Arizona largely reflecting new customer rates at Tucson Electric Power.
Revenue in the quarter totalled $2.77 billion, up from $2.72 billion in the same quarter last year.
On an adjusted basis, Fortis says it earned 85 cents per share in its latest quarter, up from an adjusted profit of 84 cents per share in the third quarter of 2023.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 82 cents per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 5, 2024.
