New York, January 27, 2026, 10:04 EST — Regular session
- Amazon shares edged up slightly in early U.S. trading, holding within a narrow band.
- Big Tech earnings and a Federal Reserve decision loom, putting investors on alert for a volatile stretch.
- A new legal settlement on refunds has shifted attention back to Amazon’s retail business.
Shares of Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) edged up 0.5% to $239.53 in Tuesday morning trading, fluctuating between $238.08 and $240.80 earlier.
The stock is edging into a crucial earnings period for the biggest tech firms, as investors seek confirmation that heavy AI investments can drive long-term growth. According to a Reuters report, Big Tech giants like Amazon are expected to boost AI spending by roughly 30%, reaching over $500 billion by 2026. Microsoft and Meta will report earnings Wednesday, followed by Amazon next week. “Like in the internet boom, the first-mover advantage doesn’t always win the marathon,” noted David Wagner, head of equities at Aptus Capital Advisors.
The broader market tone remains steady but fragile. Wall Street’s recent gradual climb has traders on edge over any earnings slip-ups, with the U.S. central bank’s January meeting wrapping up Wednesday afternoon alongside a key policy update, Reuters reported. “It seems like we’re having an expansion in corporate profits and an expansion in the economy,” said Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer at Northlight Asset Management. 1
Amazon hit the news again over its core retail operations. The company agreed to shell out $309 million plus other benefits to settle a class-action lawsuit brought by U.S. shoppers who claimed they were wrongly denied refunds after starting returns, according to a court filing cited by Reuters. Amazon denied any wrongdoing. A spokesperson said an internal review uncovered “a small subset of returns” where refunds never went through or items couldn’t be verified. 2
Amazon Web Services rolled out new Amazon EC2 G7e instances featuring Nvidia’s Blackwell GPUs. These are designed for users handling graphics-intensive tasks and AI inference, where models produce results from fresh data. 3
Traders are watching closely to see if AWS is growing quickly enough to justify its hefty spending without hurting margins. Retail also remains a key wildcard, particularly if delivery expenses climb or consumers cut back on discretionary purchases.
However, the situation works both ways. Any slowdown in cloud growth or a more cautious tone from management could cause even a minor shortfall to weigh heavily on a stock that’s currently valued on steady progress in two distinct businesses.
Amazon is set to release its earnings on Feb. 5 after the market closes, Nasdaq reports. Investors will be watching closely for insights on AWS demand and how the company plans to manage its spending in 2026. 4
