PayPal Holdings, Inc. $PYPL Shares Acquired by QRG Capital Management Inc.

QRG Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) by 12.3% in the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 197,321 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 21,666 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in PayPal were worth $8,520,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bard Associates Inc. acquired a new position in PayPal during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Allied Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in PayPal during the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Robinswood Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PayPal in the first quarter worth $26,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its position in shares of PayPal by 15,233.3% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 460 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 457 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in shares of PayPal in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.32% of the company’s stock.

PayPal News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Venmo growth supports the recovery story. Venmo’s total payment volume is growing at a mid-teens rate, giving PayPal an important source of transaction growth. Increasing adoption of products such as payments, credit and other monetization tools could help convert that activity into faster revenue growth. PayPal’s Venmo: Can Monetization Sustain Its Mid-Teens Growth?
• Positive Sentiment: Recent earnings and operational improvements remain supportive. PayPal reported quarterly earnings of $1.38 per share, ahead of the $1.28 consensus estimate, while revenue of $8.68 billion also exceeded expectations. Commentary highlighting improvements under CEO Enrique Lores and PayPal’s strong July performance has reinforced the view that the company may be stabilizing after a difficult period. Jim Cramer Examines PayPal Holdings Performance Under Enrique Lores and M&A Speculation
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation and M&A speculation are influencing sentiment. Analysts and commentators are debating whether PayPal remains undervalued following its recent share-price gains. Reported speculation about a potential buyout proposal has added an additional catalyst, but there is no confirmed transaction, making this a source of volatility rather than a firm fundamental driver. Is PayPal Holdings (PYPL) Undervalued After Earnings And Its Recent Share Price Jump?
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about monetization and the sustainability of growth. Venmo’s strong payment-volume expansion will not necessarily produce comparable revenue growth unless PayPal can increase product usage and monetization. After the stock’s sharp recent advance, any evidence that revenue conversion or profitability is lagging expectations could limit further upside. PayPal’s Venmo: Can Monetization Sustain Its Mid-Teens Growth?

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Chris Natali sold 1,337 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.10, for a total value of $77,679.70. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,216 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $128,749.60. This represents a 37.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Suzan Kereere sold 3,379 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.79, for a total transaction of $144,587.41. Following the transaction, the insider owned 30,983 shares in the company, valued at $1,325,762.57. This trade represents a 9.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 10,612 shares of company stock worth $484,534. Insiders own 0.63% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on PYPL. UBS Group set a $45.00 price target on shares of PayPal in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $50.00 price objective on PayPal in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on PayPal from $55.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Zacks Research raised PayPal from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of PayPal in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $55.72.

PayPal Trading Up 0.3%

NASDAQ:PYPL opened at $59.20 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $50.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.44 and a beta of 1.30. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $38.46 and a one year high of $79.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $49.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $47.15.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The credit services provider reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.28 by $0.10. PayPal had a return on equity of 24.39% and a net margin of 14.36%.The firm had revenue of $8.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.40 EPS. PayPal’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PayPal Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. PayPal’s payout ratio is 10.59%.

PayPal Company Profile

PayPal Holdings, Inc operates a global digital payments platform that enables consumers and merchants to send and receive payments online, on mobile devices and at the point of sale. The company provides a broad set of payment solutions, including a digital wallet, merchant payment processing, checkout services, invoicing and fraud-management tools. PayPal’s platform is designed to support e-commerce, in-person retail and person-to-person transfers, targeting both individual consumers and businesses of varying sizes.

Key products and services in PayPal’s portfolio include the PayPal wallet and checkout ecosystem, the Venmo peer-to-peer mobile app, Braintree’s developer-focused payment gateway, Xoom for international money transfers, and PayPal Credit and buy-now-pay-later options.