PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Trading Down 0.2% – Here’s Why

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL)’s share price dropped 0.2% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $75.30 and last traded at $76.03. Approximately 3,829,984 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 66% from the average daily volume of 11,314,757 shares. The stock had previously closed at $76.21.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Phillip Securities reiterated an “accumulate” rating and set a $90.00 price target (up previously from $80.00) on shares of PayPal in a report on Friday, November 1st. Susquehanna lifted their target price on PayPal from $94.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on PayPal from $92.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. UBS Group increased their price objective on PayPal from $72.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, StockNews.com raised PayPal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Thirteen 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PayPal has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $90.52.

PayPal Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $87.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $80.06. The stock has a market cap of $75.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.09, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.44.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last announced its quarterly earnings results 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. The business had revenue of $8.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.27 billion. PayPal had a net margin of 13.04% and a return on equity of 23.67%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.48 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PayPal

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PYPL. Norges Bank bought a new stake in PayPal during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,086,508,000. Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PayPal by 12,919.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 10,500,000 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $819,315,000 after purchasing an additional 10,419,351 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of PayPal by 86.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 16,762,080 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,307,945,000 after purchasing an additional 7,767,072 shares during the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership raised its holdings in PayPal by 284.0% during the 4th quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 7,804,334 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $666,100,000 after buying an additional 5,772,198 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in PayPal in the third quarter worth $387,435,000. 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.