eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) Stock Rating Lowered by Sanford C. Bernstein

eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY - Get Free Report) was downgraded by Sanford C. Bernstein from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, MarketBeat.com reports. They presently have a $65.00 price target on the e-commerce company's stock, down from their prior price target of $70.00. Sanford C. Bernstein's price objective points to a potential downside of 4.17% from the company's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of eBay from $71.00 to $70.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. StockNews.com cut eBay from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on eBay from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Benchmark increased their target price on eBay from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on eBay from $64.00 to $63.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $64.79.

eBay Price Performance

Shares of eBay stock traded up $0.63 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $67.83. 4,200,775 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,954,527. The stock has a market cap of $31.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.04, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. eBay has a 52 week low of $48.52 and a 52 week high of $71.61. The firm's fifty day moving average is $66.09 and its 200-day moving average is $64.98.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other eBay news, SVP Cornelius Boone sold 3,958 shares of eBay stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.06, for a total transaction of $265,423.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 94,392 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,329,927.52. The trade was a 4.02 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Stephen J. Priest sold 1,167 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.21, for a total value of $77,267.07. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 65,080 shares in the company, valued at $4,308,946.80. This trade represents a 1.76 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 46,310 shares of company stock worth $3,121,626. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On eBay

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in eBay by 12.4% during the 4th quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 28,493,042 shares of the e-commerce company's stock valued at $1,765,148,000 after purchasing an additional 3,149,934 shares in the last quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP grew its holdings in shares of eBay by 25.6% during the fourth quarter. Independent Franchise Partners LLP now owns 11,178,638 shares of the e-commerce company's stock valued at $692,517,000 after buying an additional 2,277,839 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of eBay by 304.2% during the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 2,105,270 shares of the e-commerce company's stock valued at $130,421,000 after acquiring an additional 1,584,404 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in eBay in the 4th quarter worth approximately $96,214,000. Finally, Boston Partners lifted its position in eBay by 35.2% in the 4th quarter. Boston Partners now owns 5,856,276 shares of the e-commerce company's stock valued at $362,823,000 after acquiring an additional 1,524,691 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.48% of the company's stock.

About eBay

eBay Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates marketplace platforms that connect buyers and sellers in the United States, the United Kingdom, China, Germany, and internationally. The company's marketplace platform includes its online marketplace at ebay.com, off-platform businesses, and the eBay suite of mobile apps.