Amazon Is Not a Retail Company -- at Least Not Anymore

Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) is practically synonymous with online retail. A growing majority of Americans start their online shopping searches at Amazon.com. It recently made a big expansion into the brick-and-mortar world with the purchase of Whole Foods Market.

But comparing Amazon's business to Wal-Mart Stores (NYSE: WMT) or other big retailers doesn't do it justice. In fact, it completely misses the mark on what kind of business Amazon is.

Understanding Amazon's business is important for investors in order to evaluate its decisions like its Whole Foods purchase or its reported delivery service.

Source: Fool.com