Morgan Stanley Boosts PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Price Target to $80.00

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) had its price target upped by research analysts at Morgan Stanley from $79.00 to $80.00 in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "equal weight" rating on the credit services provider's stock. Morgan Stanley's target price indicates a potential upside of 11.03% from the stock's previous close.

PYPL has been the topic of several other research reports. Phillip Securities reaffirmed an "accumulate" rating and issued a $90.00 target price (up previously from $80.00) on shares of PayPal in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Piper Sandler increased their price target on PayPal from $88.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of PayPal in a research note on Wednesday. StockNews.com upgraded PayPal from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Finally, Susquehanna boosted their target price on PayPal from $94.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, PayPal presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $90.55.

PayPal Price Performance

NASDAQ:PYPL traded down $2.02 on Wednesday, reaching $72.05. The stock had a trading volume of 15,270,429 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,873,513. The company has a market capitalization of $71.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.44. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $84.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $80.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. PayPal has a 1-year low of $56.97 and a 1-year high of $93.66.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.08. PayPal had a net margin of 13.04% and a return on equity of 23.67%. The business had revenue of $8.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.27 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.48 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that PayPal will post 5.03 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of PayPal

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Park Place Capital Corp raised its position in shares of PayPal by 6.6% in the fourth quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 1,886 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $161,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton lifted its position in PayPal by 67.6% during the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 310 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of PayPal by 33.2% in the fourth quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 502 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Wynn Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of PayPal by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 11,515 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $983,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. Finally, Avalon Trust Co boosted its stake in PayPal by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Avalon Trust Co now owns 2,067 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $176,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. 68.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.