PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Trading Down 0.5% Following Insider Selling

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) dropped 0.5% during mid-day trading on Friday after an insider sold shares in the company. The stock traded as low as $70.07 and last traded at $70.36. Approximately 3,331,195 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 71% from the average daily volume of 11,636,057 shares. The stock had previously closed at $70.73.

Specifically, Director Gail J. Mcgovern sold 2,446 shares of the company’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 sale, the director now owns 29,734 shares in the company, valued at $2,145,308.10. This represents a 7.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on PayPal from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Phillip Securities reiterated an “accumulate” rating and set a $90.00 target price (up previously from $80.00) on shares of PayPal in a research note on Friday, November 1st. 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 research report on Monday, December 9th. StockNews.com raised shares of PayPal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Finally, BTIG Research reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, PayPal presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $90.03.

PayPal Stock Performance

The company’s 50-day moving average price is $83.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $80.94. The company has a market cap of $70.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.26, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $8.37 billion during 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 firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.48 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PayPal

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PYPL. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in PayPal during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of PayPal in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton lifted its position in shares of PayPal by 67.6% in the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 310 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Hurley Capital LLC acquired a new position in PayPal in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC grew its position in PayPal by 344.3% during the 4th quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 351 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in 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.