PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Shares Up 1.7% - Here's Why

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) rose 1.7% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $74.59 and last traded at $74.81. Approximately 1,903,489 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 11,038,484 shares. The stock had previously closed at $73.55.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PYPL has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Compass Point initiated coverage on shares of PayPal in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. They issued a "sell" rating and a $56.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of PayPal from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Monness Crespi & Hardt decreased their price target on shares of PayPal from $120.00 to $90.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of PayPal from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $92.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of PayPal from $98.00 to $95.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $83.29.

PayPal Stock Up 0.4%

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 stock has a market capitalization of $72.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.69, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.45. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $67.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $76.02.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The credit services provider reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.16 by $0.17. The business had revenue of $7.79 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.84 billion. PayPal had a return on equity of 23.67% and a net margin of 13.04%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.08 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at PayPal

In related news, Director Deborah M. Messemer sold 3,795 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $73.00, for a total transaction of $277,035.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 13,976 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,020,248. This trade represents a 21.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Diego Scotti sold 3,839 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.24, for a total value of $281,168.36. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 16,989 shares in the company, valued at $1,244,274.36. This represents a 18.43% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 11,796 shares of company stock valued at $863,028. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of PayPal in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Hurley Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of PayPal in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Evermay Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of PayPal by 726.0% in the first quarter. Evermay Wealth Management LLC now owns 413 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 363 shares during the period. Garde Capital Inc. purchased a new position in shares of PayPal in the first quarter worth $28,000. Finally, Tsfg LLC increased its stake in shares of PayPal by 81.6% in the first quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 445 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. 68.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PayPal Company 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.