SAN FRANCISCO, Jan 27 (Reuters) – Amazon.com should report impressive fourth-quarter sales on Thursday, fueled by the holiday season, while Wall Street will watch for clues about the retailer’s profit margins in 2011.

The company, which began as a Web bookstore and now is the world’s largest online retailer, reported revenue gains of at least 39 percent in the past three quarters, and shares reached all-time highs last week, reflecting Wall Street’s high expectations.

The company will provide a first glimpse of its profit expectations for 2011 after the U.S. stock market closes on Thursday. This could show that investments and a focus on revenue, rather than profit, will continue to temper margins.

Analysts want to see a payoff on investments that took Wall Street off guard in the second quarter of 2010, including new distribution centers.

(For a look at revenue versus operating profit, click here )

Amazon historically has dismissed criticism about margin growth and focused on building its revenue base through loyalty programs such as Amazon Prime, which charges $79 per year for unlimited free shipping. Such deals, it says, ensure that customers buy more products and turn to Amazon as their primary online retailer.

Recent positive results from Google Inc and eBay point to strong online commerce performance during the holiday shopping season, said Barclays Capital analyst Douglas Anmuth.

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan 24 (Reuters) – Investors focused on Amazon.com Inc’s (AMZN.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) 2010 holiday results later this week may be blinded by eye-popping revenue gains, but an improvement in 2011 profit margins are the hoped-for wild card that could boost the shares further.

Double-digit revenue growth and the much ballyhooed Kindle e-reader have kept the world’s largest online retailer in the spotlight throughout 2010, overriding a historical skepticism towards operating margins.

But that could change as Amazon provides a first look at its full-year 2011 profit margin outlook on Thursday, when the company posts its 2010 fourth-quarter results.

“People will want to see in the back half of this year some sort of payoff in terms of margin recovery and then margin expansion again,” said Citigroup analyst Mark Mahaney. “If they don’t start rising year over year, that would cap Amazon’s stock.”

Amazon shares reached all-time highs last week and the company’s stock price is 71 times expected 2011 earnings. That far exceeds rivals in both the technology and retail sectors. Apple Inc (AAPL.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) trades at 14.6 times expected earnings and Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is at 13.5, to name two.

Amazon has been a bright spot in a global environment of protracted economic uncertainty and wavering consumer confidence, where many brick-and-mortar retailers, including Wal-Mart and Best Buy Co Inc (BBY.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), have faced erratic sales.

Robust revenue growth managed to deflect much criticism away from the topic of Amazon’s profit margins last year.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Online marketplace eBay Inc provided investors with a bullish 2011 profit outlook after the holiday quarter showed signs it is delivering a promised turnaround, as improvements in its buyer experience helped boost sales at its marketplaces unit.

Its shares rose 2.4 percent after hours.

The company, which also owns fast-growing Web payments unit PayPal, exceeded Wall Street profit estimates for its holiday fourth quarter, helped by more items sold and at higher prices, and cited a “stabilized” macroeconomic environment.

“We’re becoming a stronger, more competitive company,” Chief Executive John Donahoe told analysts, citing innovation that has attracted more buyers due to a more convenient shopping experience.

“Customers shopped a dramatically different eBay in the fourth quarter of this year than a year ago. The shopping experience is now cleaner, faster and easier to navigate,” he added.

EBay is in the last year of a three-year plan to turn around its marketplaces business, which connects online buyers with sellers.

“We were waiting for the turn and the turn has happened,” said BGC Partners analyst Colin Gillis. “You see it in sold items as well as rebounding average selling prices. They’re buying more items and they’re also paying a bit more as well.”

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Online marketplace eBay Inc exceeded Wall Street profit estimates for its holiday fourth quarter, helped by more items sold and at higher prices, and gave a bullish 2011 outlook.

Its shares rose 1.7 percent in after-hours trade.

EBay is in the last year of a three-year plan to turn around its marketplaces business, which connects online buyers with sellers.

“We were waiting for the turn and the turn has happened,” said BGC Partners analyst Colin Gillis. “You see it in sold items as well as rebounding average selling prices. They’re buying more items and they’re also paying a bit more as well.”

The company, which pioneered the online auction, is hoping to prove to shareholders that improvements to its site and user experience, including a more targeted search engine and daily deals, is encouraging traffic and delivering more consistent sales.

For the full year, eBay expects adjusted earnings of $1.90 to $1.95 on revenue of $10.3 billion to $10.6 billion.

That compares with the $1.85 per share on revenue of $10.19 billion expected by Wall Street.

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan 12 (Reuters) – Gap Inc’s (GPS.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) Athleta brand of athletic wear for women will open a flagship store on Thursday in San Francisco to connect with brick-and-mortar shoppers after booking double-digit sales growth through its catalogs and website.

The new store, in the city’s tony Pacific Heights neighborhood, will allow the brand’s affluent female target audience to discover the line, while the company decides whether to open more stores.

Petaluma, California-based Athleta, acquired by Gap in 2008 for $150 million, sells clothes for a host of activities and sports, including yoga, cycling, hiking and skiing.

Toby Lenk, president of Gap Direct, the unit that includes all of the company’s Web operations, said there were no current plans for a bigger store roll-out but added that there was a “reasonable chance” more could follow in the near future.

“It’s been strong double-digit growth ever since we bought the brand and it was strong double-digit growth before we bought them,” said Lenk, adding that the brand was “still relatively small in the grand scheme of things.”

Athleta gave Gap an entry into women’s activewear, a lucrative $31 billion U.S. market in the 12 months ended November 2010, according to research firm NPD Group. Sales growth of 2 percent in the segment exceeded the 1.2 percent growth for the broader women’s apparel market, which has been affected by overall weak consumer spending.

Gap does not break out sales for Athleta.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – The number of U.S. shoppers unable to resist buying “impulse” gifts for themselves or others is on the rise this season, due to the plethora of discounts and deals in stores.

Some 46 percent of U.S. consumers have already purchased an “impulse item” this season, according to an exclusive survey for Reuters by consumer research firm America’s Research Group.

That number increased from 28 percent and 38 percent in two similar surveys conducted earlier in November.

The impulse buying is due to the attractive price tags offered by retailers, who are having to discount merchandise to lure shoppers.

About 55 percent of consumers said they found the deals better this year than last year, with only 26 percent saying they appeared to be comparable.

“What this says is, a lot of people have seen something they’ve bought they weren’t planning on,” said Britt Beemer, president of America’s Research Group. “You have 55 percent of people saying the deals are better this year, which is why the 46 percent made an impulse purchase.”

Retailers from Macy’s Inc to Wal-Mart Stores Inc started promoting merchandise earlier this year, even in advance of Black Friday, the historical kick-off to the holiday shopping season, which attracts droves of shoppers for “door buster” deals.

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – The number of shoppers unable to resist buying “impulse” gifts for themselves or others is on the rise this season, due to the plethora of discounts and deals in stores.

Some 46 percent of consumers have already purchased an “impulse item” this season, according to an exclusive survey for Reuters by consumer research firm America’s Research Group.

That number increased from 28 percent and 38 percent in two similar surveys conducted earlier in November.

The impulse buying is due to the attractive price tags offered by retailers, who are having to discount merchandise to lure shoppers.

About 55 percent of consumers said they found the deals better this year than last year, with only 26 percent saying they appeared to be comparable.

“What this says is, a lot of people have seen something they’ve bought they weren’t planning on,” said Britt Beemer, president of America’s Research Group. “You have 55 percent of people saying the deals are better this year, which is why the 46 percent made an impulse purchase.”

Retailers from Macy’s Inc (M.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) to Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) started promoting merchandise earlier this year, even in advance of Black Friday, the historical kick-off to the holiday shopping season, which attracts droves of shoppers for “door buster” deals.

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec 2 (Reuters) – Amazon.com (AMZN.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and eBay Inc (EBAY.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) are investing in local Internet services, jumping aboard the increasingly popular and lucrative business of catering to local shoppers and stores.

Amazon, the world’s largest online retailer, plans to invest $175 million in online coupon company LivingSocial, while e-commerce giant eBay is buying Milo.com, which lets users see if items they seek are available on local store shelves. [ID:nN02241411]

The Internet’s biggest players are now setting their signs on the booming business of local services, whether through daily deals — the fastest-growing segment on Web commerce by some estimates — or a neighborhood-shopping search engine.

Google Inc (GOOG.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) is reportedly eager to buy local coupon site Groupon for as much as $6 billion, eyeing a local advertising market estimated to exceed $90 billion this year. [ID:nN01136155]

Shares of eBay gained 2.2 percent, while those of smaller local-services site Local.com (LOCM.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) rose 27 percent.

“It’s local mania,” said BGC Partners analyst Colin Gillis. “People are taking strategic positions in this marketplace. That’s what’s happening.”

LivingSocial also secured an $8 million investment from Lightspeed Venture Partners. It said it is now booking revenue of more than $1 million a day on average and expects well over $500 million in 2011.

SAN FRANCISCO, Dec 1 (Reuters) – Teen retailer Aeropostale Inc (ARO.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), facing an uncharacteristic dip in sales, announced the departure of one of its co-chief executives and forecast disappointing profit in its holiday quarter, sending its shares down 9 percent.

Co-CEO Mindy Meads will leave to pursue other interests, Aeropostale said, leaving counterpart Thomas Johnson as the company’s sole CEO, effective immediately. Meads and Johnson had been working together at the helm of Aeropostale since January 2010.

Long a high-flyer among teen retailers — with fickle customers clamoring for ever-changing fashions — Aeropostale has recently hit a rough patch, evidenced by the 1 percent decline in November same-store sales it reported on Wednesday on the heels of a 2 percent decline in October.

Those sales declines are likely to take a bite out of profit in the key holiday quarter. Aeropostale estimated fourth-quarter earnings per share of 94 to 96 cents, versus the $1.03 expected, on average, by Wall Street analysts.

Aeropostale’s business model is built upon constantly rotating promotions. Final selling prices at its stores are rarely those on the original price tags.

The company has managed in the past to stay nimble, accelerating or slowing down promotions based on the tactics of its rivals, from Abercrombie & Fitch’s (ANF.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) Hollister brand, to American Eagle Outfitters (AEO.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and fast-fashion player Forever 21.

But analysts now believe the overall promotional environment has caught up to Aeropostale. Merchandise margins fell in the third quarter as average selling prices declined – both a result of more promotions.

SAN FRANCISCO, Nov 30 (Reuters) – Consumers heeded the call of online retailers on Cyber Monday, ringing up double-digit sales growth on that key e-commerce holiday shopping day, according to data released on Tuesday.

The surge in sales on Monday exceeded expectations in a consumer environment still tempered by high unemployment and worries over the economy.

Online same-store sales, which measure Web retailers active for more than a year, rose 36 percent from the prior year, according to ChannelAdvisor, which helps retailers maximize Web selling.

ChannelAdvisor said same-store sales for their retail clients selling wares on Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) rose 98.1 percent, while those on eBay Inc (EBAY.O: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) rose 14.6 percent.

Amazon, the world’s largest online retailer, is widely expected to be a prime beneficiary of robust online sales this holiday. The company’s shares rose to an all-time high on Cyber Monday. They retreated on Tuesday to close down 2.3 percent, but are still up more than 30 percent this year.

In a separate report, web analytics firm IBM Coremetrics said U.S. online sales rose 19.4 percent from Cyber Monday 2009, with the average value of orders up 8.3 percent.

Both IBM Coremetrics and ChannelAdvisor said Cyber Monday was the strongest sales day over the long Thanksgiving shopping weekend.