PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Hits New 1-Year High at $74.87

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $74.87 and last traded at $74.87, with a volume of 167382 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $73.12.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on PYPL shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on PayPal from $65.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Daiwa America raised shares of PayPal from a “moderate buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 target price on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of PayPal from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price target on PayPal from $71.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Seventeen analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $75.58.

PayPal Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 1.24 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The stock has a market capitalization of $78.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.34, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.43. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $67.01 and its 200-day moving average is $64.38.

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

Institutional Trading of PayPal

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of PYPL. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in 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 during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of PayPal by 28.1% during the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 8,511,242 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $493,907,000 after purchasing an additional 1,866,925 shares during the last quarter. Primecap Management Co. CA boosted its stake in PayPal by 180.7% during 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 period. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in PayPal by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,668,505 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $225,283,000 after buying an additional 61,384 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in PayPal by 14.8% in 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 period. 68.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.