PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Trading Up 1.1% - Here's What Happened

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report)'s stock price was up 1.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $66.84 and last traded at $66.85. Approximately 1,580,797 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 11,181,806 shares. The stock had previously closed at $66.10.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PYPL has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of PayPal from $94.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Barclays lifted their price target on PayPal from $92.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Bank of America upgraded shares of PayPal from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $86.00 to $103.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "hold" rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded PayPal from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $107.00 target price for the company in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PayPal currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $89.13.

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PayPal Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.74 billion, a PE ratio of 14.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.60. The business's 50 day moving average is $73.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.52.

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

Insider Transactions at PayPal

In related news, Director Gail J. Mcgovern sold 2,446 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.15, for a total transaction of $176,478.90. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 29,734 shares in the company, valued at $2,145,308.10. This trade represents a 7.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PayPal

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of PayPal during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,086,508,000. Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in PayPal by 108.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 17,924,106 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,529,823,000 after purchasing an additional 9,313,783 shares during the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its holdings in shares of PayPal by 284.0% during the fourth quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 7,804,334 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $666,100,000 after purchasing an additional 5,772,198 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of PayPal in the third quarter worth $387,435,000. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. boosted its holdings in shares of PayPal by 174.1% in the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 4,233,341 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $361,316,000 after buying an additional 2,689,162 shares during the last quarter. 68.32% of the stock is owned by 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.