Erste Asset Management GmbH Purchases Shares of 169,766 PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL)

Erste Asset Management GmbH acquired a new position in shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 169,766 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $13,405,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in PYPL. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC increased its holdings in PayPal by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC now owns 1,810 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $141,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. First United Bank & Trust boosted its position in shares of PayPal by 6.4% during the third quarter. First United Bank & Trust now owns 2,395 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $187,000 after buying an additional 145 shares during the period. Ritholtz Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of PayPal by 3.3% during the third quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 4,724 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $369,000 after buying an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC raised its position in PayPal by 50.6% in the 2nd quarter. SYSTM Wealth Solutions LLC now owns 497 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 167 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Bank & Trust lifted its stake in PayPal by 4.4% in the 3rd quarter. First Bank & Trust now owns 4,016 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $313,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. 68.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PayPal Stock Performance

NASDAQ PYPL opened at $86.77 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $81.69 and a 200 day simple moving average of $70.53. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $55.77 and a twelve month high of $88.74. The company has a market capitalization of $86.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.71, a PEG ratio of 1.54 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 29th. The credit services provider reported $1.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.07 by $0.13. PayPal had a net margin of 14.08% and a return on equity of 23.44%. The business had revenue of $7.85 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.88 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.97 earnings per share. PayPal’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 4.57 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price objective on shares of PayPal from $80.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of PayPal from $73.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of PayPal from $71.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on PayPal from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt upped their target price on PayPal from $95.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 28th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PayPal currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $83.60.

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.