Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) is the prime stock for investors to play Prime Day, as it is the originator and central hub for all things related to it. This year's event runs June 23–26, 2026—a four-day, 96-hour window that Amazon has moved up from its usual July slot.
Critical details for investors to know this year include the expected 9% increase in period sales, Amazon’s 60% share of e-commerce during the event, and its impact on consumer habits. Studies have shown consumers strategically wait to stock up on low-cost essentials, setting the stage for some vendors to outperform others.
However, while Amazon is best-positioned, it is not the only company that will benefit.
#1: Walmart Fights Back to Defend Market Share
Walmart (NASDAQ: WMT) is a good play on Prime Day, too, because it is the world’s largest retailer with a growing, robust online presence. It leans heavily into weeklong sales events intended to defend share, and they work.
Walmart times its sales events to start earlier and last longer than Prime Day, with an omnichannel presence and accessibility. Omnichannel accessibility enables shoppers to benefit from same-day delivery and in-store pickup deals without an Amazon Prime subscription.
Outside of its sales events set to coincide with Prime Day, WMT catalysts include expectations that earnings growth will accelerate over the course of the year.
Quarterly growth is expected to top 9% year-over-year in the current quarter, then accelerate each quarter modestly for several quarters thereafter.
Analyst trends are positive, with sentiment firming and price target revisions moving well above the existing high.
#2: Affirm Captures Market Share With Buy-Now-Pay-Later Options
Affirm (NASDAQ: AFRM) is a strategic play on Prime Day because it enables shoppers to buy higher-ticket items with a lower upfront cost.
With as much as 10% of the Prime Day business expected to fall in the buy-now-pay-later category, Affirm is expected to see a seasonal boost and sustain its high-double-digit growth pace.
More importantly, the company will significantly expand its loan portfolio, increase recurring revenue, and improve its long-term outlook.
As it stands, Affirm is forecast to sustain a solid double-digit growth rate over the next five to six years and widen its margin along the way.
Twenty-nine analysts rate Affirm stock a Moderate Buy by consensus, with recent revisions in the high-end range, forecasting fresh highs by year’s end. They cite the company’s strong underwriting standards, the push for bank charter, and ecosystem scalability as growth drivers.
#3: Visa Cashes In as the Network Behind the Cards
Visa (NYSE: V) is uniquely positioned to benefit from Prime Day as the world’s premier payment processing platform. Details are sketchy, but it and competitor Master Card are believed to handle upwards of 90% of global volume, with Visa accounting for as much as 60% in the core U.S. market.
Not only is it the force behind most major cards, but it also has partnerships with Amazon reflected in the Amazon-branded Visa Prime card. It enables cash back, bonuses, and other incentives that boost business, membership, and loyalty for both the merchant and processor.
#4: Mastercard Rounds Out the Payment Processing Play
MasterCard (NYSE: MA) is a great play on Prime Day, as it commands the remaining market share not captured by Visa.
In this scenario, there is likely to be a modest spike in revenue and earnings, alongside organic growth drivers and a strengthening outlook for capital returns.
MasterCard pays a token dividend, worth approximately 0.7% as of mid-2026, and aggressively buys back shares.
Q1 activity helped to reduce the count by approximately 2.3% year-over-year (YOY), a pace expected to continue in upcoming quarters.
Twenty-eight analysts rate MA stock as a consensus Buy with a 35% upside, and institutions have been accumulating aggressively, running a pace of approximately $3 to $1 on a trailing 12-month basis.
#5: Target Aims to Capture Amazon’s Business
Target (NYSE: TGT) is another retailer actively working to retain its share and potentially capture additional share during Prime Day. It relies on the fact that many shoppers compare deals across platforms, using the opportunity to convert traffic with its own deals.
Because it focuses on daily items and essentials, it also converts a high rate of impulse purchases. The takeaway for TGT investors is that it offers a lower-cost entry point compared to WMT and attractive capital returns.
The dividend yields more than 3.5%, while share buybacks incrementally reduce the share count.
Target’s catalysts this year include business recovery. The company is still in the early stages of recovery but showed some traction in the last report, with comps up nearly 4.5%, which has its price trending higher in late Q2 2026.
The likely outcome is that it continues to build momentum in subsequent quarters, improving both its revenue and earnings quality. Thirty-three analysts rate Target as a consensus Hold, but sentiment has been firming, and price targets are improving ahead of the expected mid-August earnings release.
The article "5 Ways to Play Prime Day That Aren’t Amazon" first appeared on MarketBeat.
