Amazon Stock Falls Amid FTC Lawsuit Over Alleged Advertising Price Manipulation

Amazon's stock fell nearly 1.8% in trading after the Federal Trade Commission and 22 US states sued the e-commerce giant over allegations that it manipulated prices for advertisers on its platform.

The FTC claims Amazon secretly inflated advertising auction prices without advertisers' knowledge, potentially costing them $20 billion or more.

Amazon has pushed back against the accusations, stating that its advertising system is designed to improve advertisement relevance and that sales generated from clicks increased despite steady average cost per click between 2019 and 2024.

Despite near-term pressure, analysts are largely bullish on Amazon's underlying business, citing continued advertiser spending and improving AI demand at AWS.