PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirty-seven brokerages that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, twenty have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $76.38.

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on PYPL. William Blair upgraded PayPal to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. UBS Group raised their price target on PayPal from $71.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on shares of PayPal in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of PayPal from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of PayPal from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st.

PayPal Trading Down 2.7 %

NASDAQ PYPL opened at $77.88 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $79.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.62, a PEG ratio of 1.12 and a beta of 1.43. PayPal has a 52 week low of $50.25 and a 52 week high of $80.63. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $68.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $65.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a current ratio of 1.24.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $1.19 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.20. PayPal had a net margin of 14.30% and a return on equity of 22.82%. The business had revenue of $7.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.83 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that PayPal will post 4.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PayPal

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Legal & General Group Plc boosted its position in shares of PayPal by 3.3% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 8,636,644 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $501,184,000 after acquiring an additional 276,287 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PayPal by 28.1% in the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 8,511,242 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $493,907,000 after purchasing an additional 1,866,925 shares in the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA increased its stake in shares of PayPal by 180.7% in the 2nd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 4,946,460 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $287,043,000 after purchasing an additional 3,184,160 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of PayPal by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,668,505 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $225,283,000 after buying an additional 61,384 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of PayPal by 14.8% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,166,795 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $183,789,000 after buying an additional 409,322 shares during the last quarter. 68.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About PayPal

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.