Amazon to proceed with stock split

Amazon announced its stock split in early March, promising investors 20 shares for every share they now own. At the time, the stock was up 6% in extended trading.

The board also allowed it to repurchase up to $10 billion in stock, according to the company.

Early Wednesday trading saw Amazon shares rise 2.4 percent to $2,462.00 a share, marking a 22 percent gain in the past week. When trading resumes on Monday, this would translate to a post-split price of roughly $123.10 per share.

All shareholders of record on May 24 will receive 19 more shares of the company for each one owned, according to the e-commerce giant.

"This split would give our employees more flexibility in how they manage their equity in Amazon and make the share price more accessible for people looking to invest in the company," an Amazon spokesperson said.

Amazon is a leading multinational technology corporation headquartered in Seattle, Washington, that specializes in e-commerce, cloud computing, online streaming, and artificial intelligence. It has been called "one of the world's most important economic and cultural forces" and is one of the most valuable brands in the world. Along with Alphabet, Apple, Meta, and Microsoft, it is one of the Big Tech American companies.

Amazon is the most recent top tech company to divide its stock, lowering the price of each share. In February, Alphabet, the parent company of Google, announced a 20-to-1 split. Apple announced intentions for a 4-for-1 split in 2021, while Tesla announced a 5-for-1 split in mid-2020. 

Amazon's CEO, Andy Jassy, has had a bumpy start to his term, which began in July. Last year, the stock was performed least among Big Tech companies, and it has down 16 percent so far in 2022, joining a sector-wide slide.

Amazon shares recently experienced their largest one-day drop in fifteen years after the company reported a surprising first-quarter loss of $3.8 billion and the lowest year-over-year revenue growth in more than a decade.

Investors are grabbing the opportunities after the stock reached a 52-week low last week and driving it higher.

The possibility that the share price would climb before and after the split is the major reason for buying shares before the split. It's already on the rise, up 13% in the last five days. That could be due to anticipation as the split date approaches, but there has been so much market volatility in recent months that recent increases and downtrends may be more related to overall market circumstances. Amazon stock is down 27 percent year-to-date, despite it's current price of $2,450, investors shouldn't be surprised if the stock rises again.