DnB Asset Management AS Increases Holdings in PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL)

DnB Asset Management AS grew its stake in PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) by 101.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 352,066 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 177,644 shares during the period. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in PayPal were worth $30,049,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of PYPL. Park Place Capital Corp increased its stake in shares of PayPal by 6.6% during the fourth quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 1,886 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $161,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the period. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton grew its stake in shares of PayPal by 67.6% in the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 310 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in PayPal by 33.2% in the 4th quarter. JFS Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 502 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Wynn Capital LLC raised its holdings in PayPal by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Wynn Capital LLC now owns 11,515 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $983,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avalon Trust Co boosted its holdings in PayPal by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Avalon Trust Co now owns 2,067 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $176,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.32% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Gail J. Mcgovern sold 2,446 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.15, for a total value of $176,478.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 29,734 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,145,308.10. The trade was a 7.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.14% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

PayPal Trading Down 5.4 %

NASDAQ PYPL opened at $65.15 on Friday. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $56.97 and a 12 month high of $93.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $76.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.73. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.25, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.52.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.08. PayPal had a net margin of 13.04% and a return on equity of 23.67%. The firm had revenue of $8.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.27 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.48 earnings per share. PayPal’s quarterly revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on PYPL. StockNews.com downgraded PayPal from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Barclays lifted their target price on PayPal from $92.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on PayPal from $92.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Bank of America raised PayPal from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $86.00 to $103.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Fifteen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $90.03.

PayPal Profile

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.