State of Michigan Retirement System Lowers Stake in eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY)

State of Michigan Retirement System trimmed its holdings in eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) by 2.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 130,028 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock after selling 3,100 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System’s holdings in eBay were worth $8,055,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Wealth Group Ltd. purchased a new stake in eBay during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $543,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of eBay by 14.4% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 7,433 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $484,000 after purchasing an additional 938 shares during the period. Forum Financial Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of eBay during the third quarter worth approximately $213,000. National Pension Service lifted its holdings in shares of eBay by 11.9% during the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 973,015 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $63,353,000 after purchasing an additional 103,733 shares during the period. Finally, QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its position in eBay by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 112,605 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $7,332,000 after buying an additional 5,751 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.48% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on EBAY shares. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of eBay from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $60.00 to $52.00 in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Wedbush assumed coverage on shares of eBay in a report on Monday, December 9th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $70.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com raised eBay from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on eBay from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of eBay in a report on Monday, December 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $65.54.

eBay Stock Performance

eBay stock opened at $66.55 on Thursday. eBay Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $48.52 and a fifty-two week high of $71.61. The company has a market capitalization of $31.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.72, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.45. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $66.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $64.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25.

eBay Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.74%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from eBay’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.27. eBay’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.07%.

Insider Activity at eBay

In related news, CFO Stephen J. Priest sold 5,252 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.63, for a total transaction of $334,184.76. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 65,080 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,141,040.40. This trade represents a 7.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jamie Iannone sold 5,625 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.38, for a total value of $350,887.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 542,248 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,825,430.24. This trade represents a 1.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 21,524 shares of company stock valued at $1,390,509. 0.38% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.