Will Amazon Run Out of Steam in 2013?

Shares of Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) closed the day down 3.66 percent, and in the absence of other major catalysts, it looks like a downgrade from analysts at JPMorgan is to blame. The stock was cut from Overweight to Neutral at the firm, as 2013 revenue, margin, and profit forecasts were lowered.

In a note seen by Barron’s, the firm argued that Amazon’s 2012 growth story was great — so great, that 2013 is going to have a tough time following it.

“We believe gross profit growth of +40% Y/Y was a major driver of Amazon’s stock in 2012. In addition to GMS and unit growth, we think gross profit growth provides a good proxy for Amazon’s top-line growth as it normalizes for the mix- shift 3P sales,” wrote the analyst.

“We believe gross profit growth of +40% Y/Y was a major driver of Amazon’s stock in 2012,” he added. Looking ahead, “we expect gross profit to decelerate more significantly to 31% Y/Y in 2013.”

Here’s a quick breakdown of the analysts revised estimates, how they compare against consensus:

Don’t Miss: Price Tags and Screen Sizes Are Driving Tablet Growth.