eBay Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:EBAY)

eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) was the recipient of some unusual options trading activity on Friday. Traders purchased 17,615 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 100% compared to the average daily volume of 8,796 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling at eBay

In other news, CFO Stephen J. Priest sold 1,033 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.93, for a total transaction of $67,072.69. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 65,080 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,225,644.40. This trade represents a 1.56 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Jamie Iannone sold 5,625 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.38, for a total transaction of $350,887.50. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 542,248 shares in the company, valued at $33,825,430.24. The trade was a 1.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 27,149 shares of company stock worth $1,704,778 over the last ninety days. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in EBAY. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of eBay in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new stake in eBay in the 3rd quarter valued at $38,000. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC acquired a new stake in eBay in the 3rd quarter valued at $50,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in eBay by 115.5% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 836 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 448 shares during the period. Finally, Financial Management Professionals Inc. raised its stake in eBay by 276.0% during the third quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 846 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $55,000 after acquiring an additional 621 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.48% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on eBay from $70.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of eBay from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $60.00 to $52.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of eBay from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and set a $65.00 target price on shares of eBay in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised eBay from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $70.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have assigned a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.83.

eBay Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of eBay stock opened at $66.19 on Friday. eBay has a 52-week low of $40.33 and a 52-week high of $71.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.71 billion, a PE ratio of 16.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $63.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $60.97.

eBay Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a $0.27 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. eBay’s payout ratio is currently 27.14%.

About eBay

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.