Raymond James & Associates Buys 56,148 Shares of eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY)

Raymond James & Associates increased its stake in eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) by 6.9% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 873,900 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock after acquiring an additional 56,148 shares during the period. Raymond James & Associates’ holdings in eBay were worth $46,124,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC boosted its holdings in eBay by 3.1% in the first quarter. Tempus Wealth Planning LLC now owns 8,539 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $451,000 after acquiring an additional 254 shares during the last quarter. GHE LLC boosted its stake in shares of eBay by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. GHE LLC now owns 17,480 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $762,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC grew its position in shares of eBay by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 11,411 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $498,000 after buying an additional 262 shares during the period. Affinity Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of eBay by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Affinity Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,494 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $414,000 after buying an additional 275 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quent Capital LLC boosted its stake in eBay by 10.5% in the fourth quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 2,971 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $130,000 after acquiring an additional 282 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.48% of the company’s stock.

eBay Stock Up 0.5 %

EBAY traded up $0.26 during trading on Friday, hitting $49.65. The company had a trading volume of 6,896,723 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,298,042. The company has a market capitalization of $25.14 billion, a PE ratio of 9.89, a PEG ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a quick ratio of 2.44, a current ratio of 1.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.98. eBay Inc. has a one year low of $37.17 and a one year high of $52.93. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $50.81 and its 200 day moving average price is $44.82.

eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The e-commerce company reported $1.25 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $2.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.53 billion. eBay had a return on equity of 29.11% and a net margin of 25.97%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.87 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that eBay Inc. will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current year.

eBay Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 31st will be given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 30th. eBay’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.51%.

eBay declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 27th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the e-commerce company to purchase up to 8.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on EBAY shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of eBay from $49.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 28th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on eBay from $62.00 to $61.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on eBay from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on eBay from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 4th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of eBay from $42.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.35.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Edward O. Garcia sold 1,165 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.03, for a total transaction of $50,129.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 31,888 shares in the company, valued at $1,372,140.64. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.21% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.