Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Decreases Stock Position in PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. decreased its holdings in PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) by 22.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 216,744 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 61,693 shares during the period. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in PayPal were worth $18,500,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of PYPL. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd bought a new position in shares of PayPal during the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton boosted its position in PayPal by 67.6% during the fourth quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 310 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in PayPal by 344.3% during the fourth quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 351 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp boosted its holdings in PayPal by 186.1% in the third quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 412 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in PayPal in the third quarter worth about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.32% of the company’s stock.

PayPal Stock Performance

NASDAQ PYPL opened at $68.16 on Tuesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $81.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $81.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $56.97 and a fifty-two week high of $93.66.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.08. PayPal had a return on equity of 23.67% and a net margin of 13.04%. The company had revenue of $8.37 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.48 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “equal weight” rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. StockNews.com upgraded PayPal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 24th. Macquarie raised their price objective on PayPal from $115.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on PayPal from $92.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded PayPal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $92.00 price target for the company in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $90.03.

Insider Activity at PayPal

In related news, Director Gail J. Mcgovern sold 2,446 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.15, for a total value of $176,478.90. Following the sale, the director now owns 29,734 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,145,308.10. The trade was a 7.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

PayPal 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.