StockNews.com Downgrades eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) to Hold

StockNews.com downgraded shares of eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday morning.

Other research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Susquehanna lifted their target price on eBay from $43.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of eBay from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of eBay from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of eBay from $44.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of eBay from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $51.45.

eBay Price Performance

Shares of EBAY opened at $49.38 on Friday. eBay has a 1-year low of $37.17 and a 1-year high of $52.93. The stock has a market cap of $24.99 billion, a PE ratio of 9.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.99 and a quick ratio of 1.99. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $50.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $44.92.

eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The e-commerce company reported $1.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.05. eBay had a net margin of 25.97% and a return on equity of 29.11%. The firm had revenue of $2.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.53 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.87 earnings per share. eBay’s quarterly revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that eBay will post 3.75 EPS for the current year.

eBay Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Investors of record on Friday, May 31st will be paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 30th. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.19%. eBay’s payout ratio is 21.51%.

eBay announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, February 27th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the e-commerce company to buy up to 8.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at eBay

In other eBay news, SVP Edward O. Garcia sold 1,165 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.03, for a total transaction of $50,129.95. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 31,888 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,372,140.64. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Ameriprise Financial Inc. grew its position in eBay by 39.8% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 12,418,131 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $547,516,000 after acquiring an additional 3,534,030 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its holdings in shares of eBay by 2.7% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 11,167,875 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $495,407,000 after purchasing an additional 289,071 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in shares of eBay by 16.0% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,182,095 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $360,749,000 after buying an additional 1,130,089 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of eBay by 3.1% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,979,291 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $307,717,000 after buying an additional 209,695 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in eBay by 22.3% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,248,438 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $272,551,000 after buying an additional 1,141,288 shares in the last quarter. 87.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

eBay Company Profile

eBay Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates marketplace platforms that connect buyers and sellers in the United States, the United Kingdom, China, Germany, and internationally. The company's marketplace platform includes its online marketplace at ebay.com, off-platform businesses, and the eBay suite of mobile apps.