Just after Amazon (AMZN) held its big product launch event, one of its top executives, Rob Williams, is stepping down. Williams, who is the Vice President of Device Software and Services and part of Amazon’s exclusive S-team, which advises CEO Andy Jassy, will leave the company at the end of the year. According to an internal memo obtained by Reuters, Panos Panay—the division’s head—praised Williams for shaping the software and experience behind nearly every Amazon product. The memo described his departure as a retirement.
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In the same memo, Panay announced changes to the team’s structure. The Alexa Smart Vehicle group will now become part of the main Alexa team, and Tapas Roy—who previously led Fire TV development—will take over Williams’ role. Although Williams will officially step down, he’ll continue advising Panay and remain on the S-team until the end of 2025. His exit is a big deal internally because S-team members rarely leave. Williams, who has been at Amazon for 12 years and joined the 29-member S-team in 2022, did not comment publicly.
Interestingly, Williams was present at Amazon’s recent showcase in New York, where the company revealed new Echo speakers, color Kindles, and Fire TVs with better screens. However, the devices and services division has been losing money and cutting products. In addition, Amazon is slowly rolling out a major AI upgrade to Alexa and plans to replace Android on Fire tablets with its own Vega operating system.
What Is the Price Target for AMZN Stock?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on Amazon stock based on 43 Buys assigned in the past three months. Furthermore, the average AMZN stock price target of $267 per share implies 19.7% upside potential from current levels.
