Each day, Benzinga will take a look back at a notable market-related moment that happened on this date.
What Happened?
On Dec. 16, 1998, CIBC Oppenheimer analyst Henry Blodget raised his price target for Amazon.com Inc. from $150 to $400.Where Was the Market?
The S&P 500 closed at 1,161.94, and the Dow closed at 8,790.60.What Else Was Going On in the World?
In 1998, BMW bought Rolls-Royce Motors for $570 million. Microsoft Corporation released Windows 98. Average U.S. monthly rent was $619.Blodget’s Call
On Dec. 16, 1998, Blodget reiterated his Buy rating for Amazon and raised his price target for the soaring stock by 167 percent from $150 to $400.Before the upgrade, Amazon was trading at around $243 and was already up a whopping 269 percent in the previous six months. Blodget’s new price target drew ridicule from many critics at the time, but it also sent Amazon shares up 19 percent on the day the target was released.
