Amazon Could Ship 17M Kindle Fires This Year

Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN), the No. 1 e-retailer, could ship as many as 17 million of its Kindle Fire tablets this year, said Victor Anthony, analyst with Topeka Capital Markets.

Anthony said the Seattle-based Amazon, which is also the No. 1 seller of books, is likely to introduce a new version of the Kindle Fire, priced now at $199, in the current quarter, trimming the price of the current model. Amazon might sell as many 3.7 million units in the third quarter.

Amazon's Taiwanese contractor, Quanta Computer (Taipei: 2382) has the new model in production, he said. Any price cut might pre-empt a move by Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL), the world's most valuable technology company, to start shipping a mini-version of its bestselling iPad this quarter.

Anthony maintained a buy rating on Amazon shares with a price target of $400. They traded at $228.33, down $1.20, in Thursday afternoon activity. Apple shares rose $12.82 to $612.23.