Amazon shares hit a new all-time high on Wednesday, surpassing $1,500 for the first time.
The stock closed up about 1 percent at $1,482.92, after hitting $1,503.49 a share, the highest level since the e-commerce company’s initial public offering in 1997, according to FactSet.
Amazon has built more support from Wall Street after this week’s lackluster earnings from rival Walmart. The stock’s tear — it’s up about 73 percent over the past year— leaves Amazon deadlocked with Microsoft as the third-largest American public company.
Using its lead in industries like retail and cloud computing, Amazon has invested in new areas, like healthcare. That move also made headlines this week. CNBC reported that Amazon quietly launched an exclusive line of over-the-counter health products. And Albertson’s Tuesday agreement to buy Rite Aidcould improve the combined companies’ chances to compete against Amazon, which also owns grocer Whole Foods.
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has personally reaped the rewards of Amazon’s success. Between when the market opened and the day’s high, the world’s richest person added more than $1.4 billion in value to his Amazon holdings.
But Bezos has long insisted that he’s not interested in daily stock moves. Since the IPO in 1997, the company’s credo has been to “make investment decisions in light of long-term market leadership considerations rather than short-term profitability considerations short-term Wall Street reactions.”
