PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Trading 1.9% Higher - Here's Why

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) shares traded up 1.9% during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $72.48 and last traded at $72.20. 1,958,867 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 82% from the average session volume of 10,998,537 shares. The stock had previously closed at $70.83.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on PYPL. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of PayPal from $78.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of PayPal from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $92.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Friday, February 28th. Macquarie lowered their target price on shares of PayPal from $117.00 to $95.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered their target price 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of PayPal from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating, nineteen have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $83.29.

PayPal Price Performance

The company's 50-day moving average price is $68.14 and its 200-day moving average price is $75.67. The company has a market cap of $70.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at PayPal

In other PayPal news, Director Deborah M. Messemer sold 3,795 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.00, for a total value of $277,035.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 13,976 shares in the company, valued at $1,020,248. The trade was a 21.36% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Diego Scotti sold 3,839 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction dated 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 now owns 16,989 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,244,274.36. This trade represents a 18.43% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 11,796 shares of company stock worth $863,028 over the last quarter. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PayPal

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of PayPal by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,989 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $596,000 after purchasing an additional 924 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of PayPal in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $248,000. ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new stake in PayPal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,340,000. Montag A & Associates Inc. grew its holdings in PayPal by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Montag A & Associates Inc. now owns 65,391 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $5,581,000 after acquiring an additional 3,179 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Everhart Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in PayPal by 16.4% during the 4th quarter. Everhart Financial Group Inc. now owns 4,619 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $394,000 after acquiring an additional 652 shares during the last quarter. 68.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.