Amazon and Target could join forces and crush Walmart (WMT, AMZN, TGT)

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• Loup Ventures analyst Gene Munster predicts Amazon will acquire Target in 2018. 
• Target would be a powerful tool for Amazon in its quest to lure moms and get them hooked on its Prime services, according to Munster. 
• The union would also enable Amazon to leverage Target's 1,834 stores in its battle to take on Walmart, which has more than 4,700 US stores.

Amazon could be eyeing Target as its next major retail acquisition, according to one influential tech analyst. 

"Amazon will acquire Target," Loup Ventures' Gene Munster wrote Monday in a post on his predictions for 2018. "Amazon believes the future of retail is a mix of mostly online and some offline. Target is the ideal offline partner for Amazon for two reasons, shared demographic and manageable but comprehensive store count."

Target shares jumped 3% in early trading Tuesday.

Target would be a powerful tool for Amazon in its quest to lure moms and get them hooked on its Prime services, according to Munster. 

"Target’s focus on moms is central to Amazon’s approach to win wallet share," he wrote. "Amazon has, over the years, aggressively pursued moms through promotions around Prime along with loading Prime Video with kid-friendly content."

The union would also enable Amazon to leverage Target's 1,834 stores in its battle to take on Walmart, which has been using its more than 4,700 US stores to lure customers with special in-store discounts and other perks.

Amazon made it clear last year with its $13.7 billion purchase of Whole Foods that it plans to compete offline in the physical retail world. 

Buying Target would bring Amazon's store count in the US to more than 2,300 stores — about half as many as Walmart has in the US. 

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