Eavesdropper. Valuable assistant. “South Park” running gag. No matter how you regard Amazon’s (NASDAQ:AMZN) Alexa, it’s a part of life for a lot of people. However, for quite a few people, it’s no longer their primary employment. Amazon cut a bundle of jobs in the Alexa division, and investors are mildly pleased about the whole thing, sending Amazon shares up fractionally in Friday afternoon’s trading.
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Reports noted that Amazon has started to lay off a number of employees in the Alexa division, a number here defined as “several hundred.” This is actually in keeping with earlier moves from Amazon in general, which has been working on cost-cutting measures for at least the last year now. Not only has Amazon cut workers from Alexa, but it’s also cutting projects from Alexa, putting more of a focus on “…maximizing our resources and efforts focused on generative AI,” noted a passage from a shared memo.
Amazon Fighting to Get Remote Workers Back in the Office
As if the rampant layoffs weren’t enough, reports note that Amazon is also looking to put teeth in its RTO (return-to-office) protocols. Amazon has been fighting to get remote workers back in the office, demanding at least three physical days a week for each employee. Employees have fought back extensively, and likely with good reason. The cost savings inherent in remote work—no commute, no need for a specialized wardrobe, and so on—are attractive enough on their own.
But now, Amazon’s added teeth, planning to potentially refuse promotions to those who fail to show up for the minimum-required time in the office. With employees already circulating petitions calling for the end of the requirement, this may end up biting Amazon in the end.
Is Amazon a Buy, Sell, or Hold?
Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on AMZN stock based on 40 Buys assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. After a 53.52% rally in its share price over the past year, the average AMZN price target of $175.51 per share implies 21.58% upside potential.
