New results are in from July activity in the Baird/Digital Commerce 360 Ecommerce Stock Index. International Companies were up the most as a category, though the online payments technology firm PayPal showed the largest gains at the month’s close.
Online Retailers finished up in the aftermath of an early Amazon Prime Day and optimism about sales as earnings results arrived.
July takeaways from the Baird/Digital Commerce 360 Ecommerce Stock Index
- The Baird/Digital Commerce 360 Ecommerce Stock Index was up 9% in July, led by International Companies.
- PayPal (+32%), JD (+30%) and Alibaba (+27%) achieved the index’s biggest July gains.
- Online Retailers saw share prices rise 4%, with Chewy and Amazon outperforming their peers.
This index is a collaboration between Digital Commerce 360 and the financial advisory, capital markets, asset management and private equity firm Baird. It intends to provide perspective into how public markets value companies and technology providers that power digital commerce. The index contains four categories capturing activity extending throughout the Americas and China:
- Online Marketplaces
- Online Retail
- Ecommerce Technology
- International Companies
Readers should note that this index complements insights from Digital Commerce 360’s Top 2000 Database. The market research tool specifically tracks North American online retailers and their web sales.
The Baird/Digital Commerce 360 Ecommerce Stock Index, meanwhile, covers both B2C retail and B2B ecommerce companies, in addition to the technology vendors that serve them, with a broader focus on global activity. All commentary and reporting is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended to be financial advice.
Click here to read May’s ecommerce stock index results.
July ecommerce stock index results
“The Baird/Digital Commerce Ecommerce Stock Index increased nearly 9% during July, improving from a slight decline in June, and outperforming the broader S&P index, which was flat for the month on macro and inflation overhangs,” said Colin Sebastian, Baird’s managing director and senior research analyst covering internet/ecommerce.
As ecommerce companies in the index saw their share prices climb by the end of the month, the gains were felt broadly across the types of businesses tracked by the index.
“Importantly, each sub-sector of ecommerce was in positive territory in July, with International and Ecommerce technology stocks leading the pack,” Sebastian noted.
Coming off a June that saw Amazon Prime Day fall earlier than usual, the Online Retail category was up. However, its growth fell short of the increases seen internationally and by technology providers.
“International ecommerce increased 19% in July, led by strong performances by JD (+30%) and Alibaba, which was up 27% for the month as the company’s cloud and AI business continues to grow and take share,” Sebstastian explained. “Ecommerce Technology stocks were up 14% for the month, with PayPal increasing 32% as buyout speculation by Block and Stripe were in the headlines.”
Still, both retailers and marketplaces finished the month positive.
“Online Retail stocks were up 4% in July, led by Chewy (+15%) and Amazon (+14%), as investors contemplated stable ecommerce trends and the June Prime Days,” he said. “Likewise, Online Marketplace stocks were slightly positive for the month (+1%) with Etsy (+8) and Airbnb (+6%) among the best marketplace stocks in July.”
Sebastian characterized the changes as supporting Baird’s end-of-year outlook.
“We note that earnings reports thus far in Q2 are in-line or slightly better than expected for many of the leading ecommerce platforms, including Amazon and Wayfair,” he explained. “Despite ongoing concerns over the ‘K-shaped’ economy and pressures related to macro uncertainty, Baird remains positive on the broader secular Ecommerce growth opportunity and continues to expect roughly 6% year-over-year industry growth in 2026.”
Significant changes to share prices in July
The index’s strongest performer for July, PayPal, saw its biggest jump in price halfway through the month as news broke that the payments company Stripe and private equity firm Advent International had made an offer to acquire PayPal, valuing it at $53 billion. The offer, which would take PayPal private, had not yet been accepted as of Aug. 7 and would potentially face regulatory scrutiny.
In the meantime, Chewy and Amazon’s trajectories for July followed a busy first half of the summer for online retail.
CEO Sumit Singh laid out how Chewy is using AI during the company’s earnings call in June. Targeted areas, such as “customer service, pharmacy operations, fulfillment and marketing workflows,” included multiple ways the pet supplies seller has been realizing efficiencies within its clinics.
Meanwhile, U.S. consumers spent a reported $26.4 billion on ecommerce purchases during Amazon’s four-day Prime Day event in June. That total encompassed all online sales — not just at Amazon — according to Adobe Analytics.
Amazon did not make its own Prime Day sales totals public. However, it did report a 20% increase in net sales year over year for its fiscal Q2 2026, which ended June 30.
Rounding out the lowest performers in the index for July, Bed, Bath & Beyond declined 13% by the end of the month. That change preceded the retailer’s Aug. 4 announcement that it would change its corporate identity. It plans to adopt the name Neighborhood Intelligence for the parent company controlling its retail brands. Also, falling by double-digit percentages was the B2B marketplace Xometry (-11%), with home furnishings retailer Wayfair down by 8%.
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