PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Shares Up 0.6% – Here’s Why

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL)’s stock price rose 0.6% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $86.80 and last traded at $85.61. Approximately 1,934,351 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 13,159,316 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.14.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PYPL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered PayPal from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $75.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. StockNews.com raised PayPal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, November 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on PayPal from $79.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on PayPal in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on PayPal from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PayPal currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $83.60.

PayPal Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $89.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.43, a P/E/G ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.44. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $82.01 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $70.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The credit services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.07 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $7.85 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.88 billion. PayPal had a return on equity of 23.44% and a net margin of 14.08%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.97 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 4.57 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PayPal

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd acquired a new stake in PayPal in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Planning Capital Management Corp grew its stake in PayPal by 186.1% in the third quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 412 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares during the period. Financial Management Professionals Inc. grew its stake in PayPal by 125.3% in the third quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 437 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the period. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in PayPal in the third quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. acquired a new stake in PayPal in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.