Amazon Ripping the Shorts

Updated from 9:32 a.m. EDT

Wall Street can't get enough of Amazon.com(AMZN) right now -- just as it couldn't get far enough away from the online retailer's stock a few months ago.

Shares of Amazon gained 0.85% in trading on Tuesday, adding to Monday's hefty 7% gain. The stock has risen 50% in the month since Amazon beat first-quarter earnings targets, leading to a rout of investors who were skeptical about Amazon's growth prospects.

This week's rally was triggered in part by bullish reports by Wall Street analysts at Jackson Securities and Citigroup, who now see the stock positioned for even further gains even in the wake of enormous recent spikes.

For the year, Amazon is by far the best-performing big-cap Internet stock and has already tacked on more than 70%. Shares of the decade-old e-commerce company have now gained a staggering 165% from last July's lows, creating $17 billion in market value along the way.

But if Jackson Securities analyst Brian Bolan is right, the stock still has almost 20% to go over the next 12 months since he initiated coverage on it Monday with a $75 price target. Bolan rates the stock a buy.

"Investors were certainly impressed with the execution that Amazon exhibited in the first quarter of 2007," Bolan wrote. "Continued similar execution will lead to dramatic earnings per share increases and thus is likely to push the stock even higher."

Still, there is a lot more than "execution" that caused investors to flock to Amazon. The company said that it would finally rein in spending growth on technology and content. High-margin third-party sellers continued to adopt its platform internationally. Amazon stands to benefit from a favorable product mix, including the release of a Harry Potter title and a busy summer movie season, which helps DVD sales down the line.