Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) does not disclose numbers of its Prime subscription service. But in its latest 10-K filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the online retailer included a new line item that hints about its Prime subscribers.
According to the online retailing giant, revenue from its retail subscription services was $6.4 billion in 2016, versus $4.5 billion a year earlier.
Based on assumption that Amazon Prime was responsible for 90% of the revenue, Morgan Stanley estimates that the Prime service has 65 million members. Guggenheim Securities analyst Robert Drbul also believes that Amazon has about 65 million Prime members. However, Cowen & Co. analyst John Blackledge said that the Prime has closer to 80 million members.
Amazon Prime is a paid subscription service that gives users access to free shipping, streaming items and other benefits for a monthly or yearly fee.
“Net sales from Amazon Prime and other subscriptions are still growing by more than 40% annually, a dozen years after Amazon launched the membership program. That’s a good sign for Amazon’s future prospects, especially considering the majority of Prime members are still in the U.S. And some analysts estimate Prime subscribers buy twice as much on Amazon as people who aren’t part of the shopping club,” according to a report from Bloomberg.
In other news, Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is reportedly preparing to launch its own-label fashion in the United Kingdom. The e-commerce giant has picked the senior design and buying professionals from Marks & Spencer and Primark.
Amazon is ‘the Greatest Company in the World’
Billionaire tech investor Mark Cuban loves Amazon. He told CNBC on Friday that said that “Amazon is the greatest start-up and the greatest company in the world.”
In a wide-ranging interview on “Fast Money Halftime Report,” Cuban said the online retail giant was one of his biggest holdings, along with video streaming giant Netflix.
“The way they are using new technologies is not just disrupting retail, it’s getting ready to disrupt everything,” Cuban said, adding that the online retailing giant could disrupt other disruptors, like ride-hailing smartphone apps.
“I can see them competing with Uber,” Cuban contended. “They are a smart, smart, smart company,” the billionaire said.
