PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Shares Down 1.1% After Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• PayPal's share price fell 1.1% after JMP Securities downgraded their price target from $110 to $100 while maintaining a market outperform rating.
• Institutional investors now own 68.32% of PayPal's stock, reflecting changes in their holdings, with several firms increasing their investments recently.
• PayPal recently reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $1.40, exceeding analysts' estimates of $1.30, alongside a revenue of $8.29 billion for the quarter.

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) shares fell 1.1% during trading on Wednesday after JMP Securities lowered their price target on the stock from $110.00 to $100.00. JMP Securities currently has a market outperform rating on the stock. PayPal traded as low as $70.44 and last traded at $70.65. 5,835,929 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 47% from the average session volume of 11,102,141 shares. The stock had previously closed at $71.45.

A number of other research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Tuesday. Macquarie reduced their target price on PayPal from $117.00 to $95.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Barclays reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Tuesday. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $96.00 target price on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded PayPal from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $84.57.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PayPal news, Director Deborah M. Messemer sold 3,795 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 13,976 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,020,248. This trade represents a 21.36% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Suzan Kereere sold 4,162 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.24, for a total value of $304,824.88. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 48,483 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,550,894.92. This represents a 7.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 11,796 shares of company stock valued at $863,028. 0.08% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PayPal

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mpwm Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new stake in PayPal during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Hurley Capital LLC bought a new stake in PayPal during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Evermay Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in PayPal by 726.0% during the first quarter. Evermay Wealth Management LLC now owns 413 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 363 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank bought a new stake in PayPal during the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Garde Capital Inc. bought a new stake in PayPal during the first quarter valued at about $28,000. 68.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PayPal Trading Down 1.7%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $73.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $72.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.38, a PEG ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 1.45.

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

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.