Amazon’s market cap surged past Microsoft and Apple as AMZN shares reached $1,629.51 today, a 3.44% increase. It is now the largest U.S. listed company by market capitalization. Amazon has a market cap of $796.78 billion, followed by Microsoft’s $783.57 billion, and Apple’s $701.99 billion.

Amazon and Netflix Outshone the Rest of FAANG in 2018

The majority of the FAANG stocks, including Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, and Google’s parent company Alphabet, underperformed last year.

Due to the Cambridge Analytica scandal, 2018 was marked as the worst year for Facebook. It lost 25% and currently holds a market cap of $396.50 billion. On the other hand, Apple not only lost 7% but also its position as the first publicly traded U.S. company to reach a market cap of $1 trillion in September 2018.

Meanwhile, Alphabet lost only 1% after gaining 30% in 2017. Amazon shares saw an increase of 28% last year; however, Netflix topped the list by gaining 40%.

Analysts Expect a Bull Run for Amazon this Year

Equity research firm Pivotal Research Group published a report yesterday which predicts that Amazon shares might hit $1,920 by the end of 2019.

The firm’s senior analyst, Brian Wieser, wrote that the stock could increase by over 20%, causing Amazon to reach a market cap of $1 trillion. He added that the digital advertising sector is expected to remain as the reason behind the company’s revenue growth this year.

However, the company isn’t safe from upcoming regulations and competition in the market. Wieser wrote:

While [Amazon Web Services] AWS probably holds up well because of the secular growth trends it is driving and the long-term contracts it has with many of its customers, the retail business might face risks because of the relative maturity of e-commerce and likelihood that consumer spending trends would probably negatively impact the company in a way they didn’t during the last recession.

Meanwhile, Apple installed a new advertisement in Las Vegas yesterday. The ad takes a jibe at several of its FAANG competitors — Google, Facebook, and Amazon — by displaying the rear camera of an iPhone with a quote saying, “What happens on your iPhone, stays on your iPhone.” The ad also includes a link to Apple’s privacy policies.

Featured Image from Shutterstock. Price Charts from TradingView.