Amazon.com, Inc. (NDAQ:AMZN) is continuing to party like it's 1999 with shares nearly tripling off of their 52-week lows ahead of their earnings report today. Shares are already up in anticipation of strong earnings after Google, Apple and RIM all reported blowout quarters.

Amazon's two previous quarters showcased blockbuster earnings growth, which has led to high expectations for this quarter leading into the holiday shopping season. Sales in the third quarter benefited from the blockbuster release of the last Harry Potter, which drew many readers to the store.

The majority of today's move, however, appears to be shorts covering before the earnings announcement. The online retailer showed 36.8 million shares sold short at the end of September and this could clearly be crippling if Amazon's earnings turn out to be along the lines of Apple or Google.

In the end, strong revenue growth coupled with improving margins as a result of lower costs and higher third-party mixes have resulted in a strong stock during  the past few months. Whether or not this success is already priced in remains to be seen, but this is definitely a stock worth following!

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Netflix Inc. (NDAQ:NFLX) shares rose more than eight percent today after the company's earnings won over shareholders on Wall Street. The surprisingly strong results eased worries that the company's profits were suffering from a lengthy battle with competitor Blockbuster and as a result of a shrewd price cutting strategy that revived subscriber growth.

Revenue for the third quarter rose 15% from $256 million to $294 million while net income rose to $15.7 million from $12.8 million a year earlier. These numbers were validated by free cash flow growth from $22.3 million to $36.1 million. And last but not least, the online rental company managed to increase its subscriber base a whopping 24% year over year and even raised its guidance for next year to include revenues of $1.2 billion on 7.5 million subcribers.

The online rental space has experienced a lot of competition recently that has caused some concern for Netflix investors. Three months ago, Netflix suffered its first quarterly decrease in subscribers while Blockbuster enlisted 600,000 new online customers. Netflix responded by lowering their price by $1 per month, which expanded its sign-ups without damanging profits as the company was able to spend less on advertising.

Analysts also increased their price targets on the company. Lehman Brothers' Douglas Anmuth increased his target to $24 per share while Banc of America's Brian Pitz kept his target steady at $22 per share. Some analysts are concerned that Netflix's upcoming R&D costs along with signs that the company's growth is sustainable and not just the beginning of another damaging price war.

In the end, this is great news for shareholders but whether or not Netflix can build a sustainable strategy around its price cuts remains to be seen. Regardless, this is definitely a stock to watch over the next few quarters!

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Delphi Corporation (OTC:DPHIQ) announced that it's emergence from bankruptcy would be postponed until 2008, according to an 8-K filing with the SEC. The bankrupt auto parts maker said it wants to push back the continued hearing on its disclosure statement two weeks so that it can incorporate potential plan changes.

"Delphi is continuing to work toward emergence as soon as possible and anticipates that the schedule will facilitate emergence during the first quarter of 2008," the company said in the SEC filing. The delay is reportedly due to longer-than-expected negotiations with former parent General Motors as well as several of its key investors including Appaloosa Management.

Delphi filed its reorganization plan on September 6th after much negotiation following its October 2005 bankruptcy. The plan calls for the funding consortium to purchase $800 million in convertible preferred shares and approximately $175 million in common stock of the reorganized company. The investors also are committed to purchasing any unsubscribed common shares after a $1.575 billion rights offering that will be made availale to shareholders.

Delphi's common stock shareholders will be able to get a pro-rata share of 1.48 million shares of new common stock; transferrable rights to buy 45.6 million of the 147.62 million total shares for $1.75 billion; five year warrants to purchase an additional 5% of common shares; and nontransferrable rights to buy about $572 million of shares at $45 per share.

In the end, many are looking forward to seeing Delphi emerge from bankruptcy as it could mean great opportunities to profit. The interesting provisions in this bankruptcy plan also make it very interesting for institutional investors who want a piece of the action. Combined, these factors make Delphi a stock worth watching!

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