PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) traded down 0.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $64.66 and last traded at $65.07. 1,538,386 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 14,480,221 shares. The stock had previously closed at $65.11.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on PYPL. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $84.00 target price on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Canaccord Genuity Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 target price on shares of PayPal in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $78.00 price target on shares of PayPal in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Barclays increased their price objective on PayPal from $81.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of PayPal from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $75.25.

PayPal Stock Up 1.4 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $67.47 billion, a PE ratio of 16.39, a P/E/G ratio of 0.92 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $61.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $62.27.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.20. PayPal had a return on equity of 22.82% and a net margin of 14.30%. The company had revenue of $7.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.82 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.83 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 4.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at PayPal

In other PayPal news, Director Deborah M. Messemer sold 4,422 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.65, for a total transaction of $272,616.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 13,976 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $861,620.40. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of PayPal

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in PayPal during the fourth quarter valued at $749,561,000. Primecap Management Co. CA raised its position in shares of PayPal by 180.7% during the 2nd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 4,946,460 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $287,043,000 after buying an additional 3,184,160 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its holdings in shares of PayPal by 125.1% in the 4th quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 1,724,188 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $105,882,000 after acquiring an additional 958,130 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its position in PayPal by 15.8% in the first quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 6,644,317 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $445,103,000 after acquiring an additional 904,804 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Boston Partners increased its stake in PayPal by 4,024.5% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 783,248 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $48,099,000 after acquiring an additional 764,258 shares during the last quarter. 68.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About PayPal

PayPal Holdings, Inc operates a technology platform that enables digital payments on behalf of merchants and consumers worldwide. It operates a two-sided network at scale that connects merchants and consumers that enables its customers to connect, transact, and send and receive payments through online and in person, as well as transfer and withdraw funds using various funding sources, such as bank accounts, PayPal or Venmo account balance, PayPal and Venmo branded credit products comprising its installment products, credit and debit cards, and cryptocurrencies, as well as other stored value products, including gift cards and eligible rewards.