Amazon (AMZN, Financial) has surpassed Alphabet (GOOGL, Financial), Google's parent company, as the second-most valuable company behind Apple (AAPL, Financial). The online retailer's market value has reached close to $765 billion, about $3 billion more than Google's market value, according to CNN Money.
Apple is currently the only company that beats Amazon in value, coming in at $900 billion.
Amazon's stock has soared 83% over the last year. The company's market capitalization could potentially hit the $1 trillion mark if its stock continues to grow at the current pace. Hitting the $1 trillion mark would make Amazon the most valuable publicly-listed company, although Apple would match the value one week later if its stock continued at its current growth pace.
Amazon's growth has been attributed to its rapid revenue increase, as more businesses sell their products online and move their computing operations to Amazon Web Services.
The company's stock has also been helped by news of new partnerships, like those with JPMorgan Chase (JPM) and Berkshire Hathaway BRK:A, BRK:B) to provide healthcare for employees.
Amazon is also reportedly considering acquiring some locations from bankrupt Toys "R" Us stores, Bloomberg reported. The company has no interest in maintaining the brand, but may use the physical space to open brick and mortar stores.
Amazon has declined to comment on the matter.
Along potential offline growth, Amazon may also be looking to further disrupt the shipping industry. The company has reportedly filed a patent for a delivery drone that responds when you call or wave.
The concept drone is designed to recognize and respond to human gestures. The patent was initially filed in 2016 but was published this week.
Several components are detailed in the patent, including navigation, communication, delivery components and gesture determination. The drones would come equipped with light sensors, an infrared camera, visible light camera, depth aware cameras and auditory sensors.
The addition of gesture and voice recognition would allow people to help the vehicle on its path to the delivery location.
The drone's concept is impressive, but at this point, it is still only a patent. It is still unclear as to whether the drone will be produced. Amazon has several patents on ideas that have yet to turn into products, including a self-destructing drone.
While Amazon appears to have exciting things in the works, making its stock more attractive, it's still working out some kinks with its own brand AmazonBasics.
Last week, the company issued a voluntary recall on six of its AmazonBasics portable chargers. Amazon cited risks of starting fires or melting due to overheating.
The recalled models were sold between 2014 and 2017, the Verge reported. Amazon has notified buyers of the recall through email. Buyers who did not receive an email are encouraged to visit the company's recall site and register for a refund.
Amazon isn't the only company to deal with faulty product issues. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that 30 million people are injured or killed every year due to dangerous products.
Investors shrugged off the recall, although the stock has been wavering over the last week.
Disclosure: The author does not own any stake in the listed equities.
