Associated Banc Corp Trims Stock Position in PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL)

Associated Banc Corp lessened its stake in shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) by 30.6% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,648 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 2,048 shares during the quarter. Associated Banc Corp’s holdings in PayPal were worth $397,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. FMR LLC raised its position in PayPal by 86.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 16,762,080 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,307,945,000 after purchasing an additional 7,767,072 shares during the last quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its position in PayPal by 12,919.4% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 10,500,000 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $819,315,000 after purchasing an additional 10,419,351 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in PayPal by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,615,476 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $564,631,000 after purchasing an additional 84,337 shares during the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA raised its position in PayPal by 21.6% in the 3rd quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA now owns 6,015,816 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $469,414,000 after purchasing an additional 1,069,356 shares during the last quarter. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in PayPal in the 3rd quarter valued at $387,435,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.32% of the company’s stock.

PayPal Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PYPL opened at $68.95 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $68.21 billion, a PE ratio of 17.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.52. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $56.97 and a 12 month high of $93.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.26. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $79.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $80.94.

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

Insider Transactions at PayPal

In related news, Director Gail J. Mcgovern sold 2,446 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.15, for a total value of $176,478.90. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 29,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,145,308.10. This trade represents a 7.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of PayPal from $94.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $100.00 price objective on shares of PayPal in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “overweight” rating on shares of PayPal in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Macquarie upped their price objective on shares of PayPal from $115.00 to $117.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on shares of PayPal from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $90.03.

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.