For Immediate Release
Chicago, IL – July 8, 2026 – Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include: Amazon.com, Inc. AMZN, Walmart Inc. WMT, American Express Co. AXP, Vitamin Cottage, Inc. NGVC and Ampco-Pittsburgh Corp. AP.
Here are highlights from Tuesday’s Analyst Blog:
Top Analyst Reports for Amazon, Walmart and American Express
The Zacks Research Daily presents the best research output of our analyst team. Today's Research Daily features new research reports on 16 major stocks, including Amazon.com, Inc., Walmart Inc. and American Express Co., as well as two micro-cap stocks Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage, Inc. and Ampco-Pittsburgh Corp. The Zacks microcap research is unique as our research content on these small and under-the-radar companies is the only research of its type in the country.
These research reports have been hand-picked from the roughly 70 reports published by our analyst team today.
You can see all of today’s research reports here >>>
Today's Featured Research Reports
Amazon.com’s shares have outperformed the Zacks Internet - Commerce industry over the past year (+12.8% vs. +2.5%). The company’s international expansion and diversification across e-commerce, AWS cloud services, advertising and streaming create multiple revenue streams while reducing concentration risk.
For 2Q’26, AMZN guided net sales of $194-$199 billion and operating income of $20-$24 billion. AI integration across operations enhances personalization, logistics and AWS offerings, strengthening competitive positioning. Shares have outperformed the industry in the past year.
However, capital expenditure requirements for AI infrastructure and data centers strain financial resources and compress margins, with trailing-12-month free cash flow decreasing to $1.2 billion. The company’s expanding debt burden reduces financial flexibility amid rising interest rates. Intensifying competition from Walmart, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud is an overhang.
(You can read the full research report on Amazon.com here >>>)
Shares of Walmart have outperformed the Zacks Retail - Supermarkets industry over the past year (+17% vs. +12.9%). The company remains well positioned due to its scale, value proposition and expanding omnichannel ecosystem. The company’s store network supports fast fulfillment, convenient pickup and delivery, and stronger digital engagement.
Marketplace, advertising and membership are becoming more important profit drivers, helping diversify earnings beyond traditional retail and improve the business mix. Investments in automation and AI should enhance customer experience, efficiency and long-term productivity.
Strong traffic, broad assortment and price leadership also create opportunities to expand higher-margin services over time. While fuel costs, currency movements, policy uncertainty and elevated investments may affect near-term profitability, Walmart’s focus on execution, digital expansion and ecosystem growth supports a favorable long-term outlook.
(You can read the full research report on Walmart here >>>)
American Express’ shares have outperformed the Zacks Financial - Miscellaneous Services industry over the past year (+13.4% vs. -22%). The company is benefiting from strong spending growth, particularly from Millennials and Gen Z, supported by experience-driven rewards, travel and dining platforms, and expanding digital capabilities. Strategic acquisitions and partnerships across travel, lifestyle, and small-business ecosystems further strengthen engagement and transaction volumes.
AI Investments, digital payments, and B2B solutions are also enhancing long-term growth prospects. It returned $2.3 billion to shareholders in Q1 2026 through dividends and buybacks. AXP has outperformed its industry over the past year.
However, rising expense intensity, elevated credit-loss provisions amid weakening consumer credit trends, and relatively high leverage could pressure margins and earnings stability if macro conditions remain challenging. We reiterate a Neutral stance on the stock.
(You can read the full research report on American Express here >>>)
Shares of Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage have outperformed the Zacks Food - Natural Foods Products industry over the past six months (+38.5% vs. +23.2%). This microcap company with a market capitalization of $765.18 million is supported by resilient operating performance, with positive comparable sales growth, rising loyalty program penetration and continued earnings growth despite a cautious consumer environment.
Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage offers a compelling long-term growth story through disciplined store expansion, a flexible small-format model and a targeted 4-5% annual unit growth rate. An expanding portfolio of more than 900 exclusive private-label products, ERP-driven operational efficiencies and robust cash generation strengthen its competitive position and provide financial flexibility to fund growth initiatives and dividends.
However, key risks include softer consumer spending on premium organic products, rising technology and expansion costs, supply-chain and organic sourcing constraints, and intensifying competition from larger retailers. The stock trades at 0.56X trailing 12-month EV/sales.
(You can read the full research report on Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage here >>>)
Ampco-Pittsburgh’s shares have outperformed the Zacks Metal Products - Procurement and Fabrication industry over the past six months (+39.8% vs. -2.3%). This microcap company with a market capitalization of $162.21 million has its investment thesis supported by its shift toward higher-value infrastructure markets, with ALP benefiting from sustained demand across nuclear energy, defense, power generation and mission-critical industrial applications.
Portfolio rationalization and footprint optimization should improve utilization, margins and earnings quality, while favorable tariff dynamics, reshoring trends and industry consolidation create market share opportunities.
Yet execution remains critical as AP must improve profitability in its core FCEP business and convert backlog into sustainable cash flow. Elevated leverage and asbestos liabilities remain overhangs. The valuation suggests investors continue to discount execution and balance-sheet risks despite improving fundamentals, offering upside if operational recovery, margin expansion and deleveraging progress as expected.
(You can read the full research report on Ampco-Pittsburgh here >>>)
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Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Inherent in any investment is the potential for loss. This material is being provided for informational purposes only and nothing herein constitutes investment, legal, accounting or tax advice, or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold a security. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. It should not be assumed that any investments in securities, companies, sectors or markets identified and described were or will be profitable. All information is current as of the date of herein and is subject to change without notice. Any views or opinions expressed may not reflect those of the firm as a whole. Zacks Investment Research does not engage in investment banking, market making or asset management activities of any securities. These returns are from hypothetical portfolios consisting of stocks with Zacks Rank = 1 that were rebalanced monthly with zero transaction costs. These are not the returns of actual portfolios of stocks. The S&P 500 is an unmanaged index. Visit https://www.zacks.com/performance for information about the performance numbers displayed in this press release.
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Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN): Free Stock Analysis Report
Walmart Inc. (WMT): Free Stock Analysis Report
American Express Company (AXP): Free Stock Analysis Report
Ampco-Pittsburgh Corporation (AP): Free Stock Analysis Report
Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage, Inc. (NGVC): Free Stock Analysis Report
This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).