by Ian Cooper

The holiday shopping season is still weeks away.

Yet, millions are getting set to start their shopping sprees.

In fact, about 48% of holiday shoppers surveyed by Bankrate, according to USA Today, say they’re planning to start holiday shopping by Halloween.

“Special retailer sale events like Amazon Prime Days, Target Circle Week and Walmart’s Holiday Deals are contributing to the early rush, encouraging early holiday shopping,” they added.

And, according to eMarketer, U.S. holiday sales are expected to accelerate. “Total US retail sales for November and December 2024 will increase by a healthy 4.8% YoY to reach $1.353 trillion, with ecommerce growing at nearly twice that rate.”

That being said, investors may want to start loading up on holiday stocks and ETFs, such as:

Amazon (AMZN)

In most years, Amazon is a no-brainer stock to buy and hold for the holiday rush. In fact, with the exception of 2022, the ecommerce giant has historically pushed higher heading into the holidays, which we expect to happen again this year.

Earlier this year, AMZN announced record-breaking sales from its Prime Day event, with Prime members taking advantage of substantial deals. Better, the company’s new AI-powered shopping assistant, Rufus, is also helping millions find what they’re looking for.

Amplify Online Retail ETF (IBUY)

With an expense ratio of 0.65%, the Amplify Online Retail ETF (IBUY should benefit from an expected surge in e-commerce spending, especially with holdings in Affirm Holdings (AFRM), Amazon (AMZN), BigCommerce Holdings (BIGC), Apple (AAPL) and Netflix (NFLX) — a few heavyweights on the list.

The ETF tracks the EQM Online Retail Index, whose holdings derive at least 70% of revenues, or a minimum of $100 billion in annual sales from online and/or virtual sales.

Direxion Daily AMZN Bull 1.5x Shares (AMZU) The Direxion Daily AMZN Bull 1.5x Shares (AMZU) is another interesting opportunity. With an expense ratio of 1.06%, this ETF offers single-stock exposure to Amazon. With this one, the fund seeks 150% daily leveraged investment results.