PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Downgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of PayPal from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Wednesday. BTIG Research reaffirmed a neutral rating on shares of PayPal in a research report on Friday, January 5th. Argus lowered PayPal from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on PayPal from $75.00 to $70.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on PayPal from $74.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday. Twenty-five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $72.73.

PayPal Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PYPL opened at $65.70 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $63.56 and its 200 day moving average is $60.44. The company has a market cap of $68.73 billion, a PE ratio of 16.55, a P/E/G ratio of 1.22 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.28 and a quick ratio of 1.29. PayPal has a 1 year low of $50.25 and a 1 year high of $76.54.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The credit services provider reported $1.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.22 by ($0.14). PayPal had a net margin of 14.26% and a return on equity of 21.58%. The business had revenue of $7.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.52 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.86 earnings per share. PayPal’s quarterly revenue was up 9.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that PayPal will post 4.07 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at PayPal

In related news, SVP Frank Keller sold 7,686 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.64, for a total value of $466,079.04. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 23,430 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,420,795.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of PayPal

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Chambersburg PA bought a new position in shares of PayPal during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Sutton Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in PayPal by 115.0% during the third quarter. Sutton Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 443 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares in the last quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. boosted its position in shares of PayPal by 77.5% in the first quarter. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. now owns 394 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the period. American National Bank purchased a new stake in shares of PayPal in the first quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Private Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of PayPal during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.32% of the company’s stock.

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.