"Cyber Monday" is the official start to the online holiday shopping season, not to be confused with "Black Friday", sending up retail and possibly Internet stocks and exchange traded funds (ETFs). Lots more retailers are launching online only specials to encourage shoppers to buy more and shop, without having to leave home. Some are even luring customers with free shipping with no minimum purchase deals.
Anne D’Innocenzio for Associated Press reports that the lures may have worked, with many sites seeing surges in traffic that met expectations. Internet HOLDRs (HHH) is one ETF that could benefit from the traffic. Amazon (AMZN) makes up 25% of this ETF, and eBay (EBAY) makes up 28.5%, and the happy holiday shoppers seem to gravitate to these sites.
Dan Gallagher for MarketWatch reports that there is a slowdown from last year’s "Cyber Monday" turnout. Online shopping actually showed a 26% increase last year for the Monday shoppers and about 15% this year.
How are the Internet ETFs doing:
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Internet HOLDRs (HHH) up 8.3% year-to-date
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First Trust Dow Jones Internet Index (FDN) up 8.7% year-to-date
The opinions and forecasts expressed herein are solely those of Tom Lydon, and may not actually come to pass. Information on this site should not be used or construed as an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to buy, or a recommendation for any product.