PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) Stake Boosted by Virtu Financial LLC

Key Points

• Virtu Financial LLC increased its holdings in PayPal Holdings by 114.0%, now owning 57,129 shares valued at approximately $3.7 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Invesco Ltd. and Koa Wealth Management LLC, have also raised their stakes in PayPal during the first quarter, indicating strong investor interest.
• PayPal recently reported an EPS of $1.40 for the last quarter, surpassing expectations, with a revenue of $8.29 billion compared to analyst forecasts.

Virtu Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL - Free Report) by 114.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 57,129 shares of the credit services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 30,432 shares during the quarter. Virtu Financial LLC's holdings in PayPal were worth $3,728,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC acquired a new position in PayPal in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new stake in shares of PayPal during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. bought a new position in shares of PayPal in the 4th quarter valued at about $35,000. Evermay Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in PayPal by 726.0% during the 1st quarter. Evermay Wealth Management LLC now owns 413 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 363 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in PayPal during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.32% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Chris Natali sold 7,102 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.35, for a total value of $492,523.70. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Diego Scotti sold 3,839 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.24, for a total transaction of $281,168.36. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 16,989 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,244,274.36. This trade represents a 18.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 22,736 shares of company stock valued at $1,620,835. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

PayPal Price Performance

NASDAQ:PYPL traded down $0.57 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $67.65. The stock had a trading volume of 9,663,964 shares, compared to its average volume of 12,859,930. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.63 billion, a PE ratio of 14.46, a P/E/G ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.42. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $72.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $71.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 1.33. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $55.85 and a 12 month high of $93.66.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The credit services provider reported $1.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $8.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.08 billion. PayPal had a net margin of 14.49% and a return on equity of 25.35%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.19 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $88.00 price objective on shares of PayPal in a research report on Thursday, June 26th. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $96.00 price target on shares of PayPal in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on PayPal from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Wall Street Zen raised PayPal from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price target on PayPal from $103.00 to $93.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and eighteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $85.00.

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.