FAANG Report: Amazon's market cap could hit $1.5 trillion in two years; Instagram founders abandon Facebook

Amazon.com Inc’s (NASDAQ:AMZN) market cap may soar to $1.5 trillion in two years as the stock could hit $3,000 per share, a Jefferies analyst was quoted by CNBC news as saying.

Analyst Brent Thill said the explosive growth of the world’s largest retailer will be driven by the company’s Prime, cloud and advertising businesses. Amazon is the second US company to recently hit a market value of $1 trillion behind smartphone maker Apple.

“In our view, many of its embedded growth opportunities are underappreciated. AWS (Amazon Web Services), advertising and subscription are all growing — two times faster than the core and are more profitable,” Thill said.

Amazon stock rose 1% to $1,954.56.

READ: Qualcomm accuses Apple of sharing trade secrets with Intel in a plot to replace its chips

Apple Inc’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) new iPhones may be enjoying “healthy” sales volumes based on the attractive deals being offered by mobile carriers, a report by Barron’s said.

Analysts from RBC Capital Markets said the newest lineup of phones could help drive “low-to-mid single digit growth this cycle” for the company.

It said that the latest round of iPhone promotions looks “more attractive” than they did last year. Verizon, for example, has an offer to buy one new iPhone and get $700 off another with a new line. There are also offers from Sprint, T-Mobile US and AT&T.

Apple shares were up 0.75% to $222.44.

The founders of Instagram, Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger, are leaving Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) after growing tensions with its CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, over the direction of the photo-sharing app, a report by Bloomberg said.

The pair were frustrated with an uptick in day-to-day involvement by Zuckerberg, who has become more reliant on Instagram in planning for Facebook’s future, the report said.

The two had been able to keep the brand and product independent while relying on Facebook’s infrastructure and resources to grow, Bloomberg added.

Facebook shares were flat at $165.41.

READ: Google ends ban on cryptocurrency-related advertising 

The CEO of Alphabet Inc’s Google (NASDAQ:GOOG), Sundar Pichai, will meet with members of the US Congress on both sides of the aisle to discuss the company’s business dealings in China and accusations of political bias, a report by CNBC said.

Google and its parent company Alphabet were blistered last month for snubbing a congressional hearing last month on election meddling.

Google’s boss will address issues ranging from the firm’s business dealings in China to allegations of political bias at the meeting with Republican officials. The meeting was organized by Republican House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, the report said.

Google stock gained 0.9% to $1,184.08.

Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) is doubling down on its successful formula of commissioning original science-fiction and comedy series as the streaming giant seeks to maintain its lead over competitors, a report by Hollywood Reporter said.

The report quoted a study by Ampere Analysis which found that Netflix has more than 250 new commissions planned, a figure that will more than double the 229 originals in the Netflix catalog.

“All the major players have been expanding the number of original commissions in the face of an increasingly competitive market,” said Richard Cooper, an analyst at Ampere.

Netflix shares were lower by 0.46% at $367.90.

Story by ProactiveInvestors