Amazon shares fluctuate after analyst cuts outlook

SEATTLE - Shares of Amazon.com Inc. fell as low as $43.30 on Friday after an analyst slashed his profit and sales outlook for next year, blaming a downward trend in online shopping and the renewed strength of the U.S. dollar.

Pacific Crest Securities analyst Steve Weinstein cut his profit outlook on Amazon to $1.30 per share from $1.72 per share, and his sales outlook to $20.79 billion from $22.94 billion.

Analysts, on average, expect the Seattle-based company will post a profit of $1.48 per share on sales of $21.3 billion next year, according to a Thomson Reuters poll.

"The economy and e-commerce spending have failed to bottom and continue their downward trends," Weinstein wrote in a note to investors.

He said he now expects online shopping will be flat next year, with potential declines in the first half. He had been expecting single-digit growth.

He said the renewed strength of the U.S. dollar against the pound, euro and yen is also working against the Web retailer, which gets a boost from sales in stronger currencies when the dollar is weak.

Excluding the impact of exchange rates, however, he expects Amazon will grow at a faster clip than the overall industry.

Shares of Amazon.com had pared back some losses, to gain 9 cents to $47.41, in afternoon trading Friday.

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