Alps Advisors Inc. Decreases Position in eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY)

Alps Advisors Inc. lowered its stake in shares of eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY - Free Report) by 10.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 44,061 shares of the e-commerce company's stock after selling 5,113 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc.'s holdings in eBay were worth $2,984,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Orion Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in eBay during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new stake in eBay during the first quarter worth $29,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. purchased a new stake in eBay during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. purchased a new stake in eBay during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Transce3nd LLC purchased a new stake in eBay during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.48% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Citizens Jmp upgraded eBay to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on eBay from $63.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, June 30th. Daiwa America upgraded eBay from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on eBay from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC increased their price objective on eBay from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have assigned a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $68.12.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Jamie Iannone sold 10,974 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.75, for a total transaction of $831,280.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 306,651 shares in the company, valued at $23,228,813.25. This trade represents a 3.46% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, SVP Jordan Douglas Bradle Sweetnam sold 22,207 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.04, for a total transaction of $1,666,413.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 22,206 shares in the company, valued at $1,666,338.24. This represents a 50.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 326,183 shares of company stock valued at $23,490,942 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.64% of the company's stock.

eBay Stock Performance

EBAY traded down $0.11 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $77.11. 3,593,286 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,051,451. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $74.41 and its 200 day simple moving average is $68.95. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16. eBay Inc. has a 1-year low of $53.10 and a 1-year high of $79.84.

eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The e-commerce company reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.34 by $0.04. eBay had a return on equity of 36.60% and a net margin of 19.78%. The firm had revenue of $2.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.55 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.25 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that eBay Inc. will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current year.

eBay Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th were given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. eBay's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.62%.

eBay Profile

eBay Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates marketplace platforms that connect buyers and sellers in the United States, the United Kingdom, China, Germany, and internationally. The company's marketplace platform includes its online marketplace at ebay.com, off-platform businesses, and the eBay suite of mobile apps.