Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Decreases Stock Position in PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. decreased its holdings in shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) by 3.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 330,039 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 11,238 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in PayPal were worth $28,169,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in PayPal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,086,508,000. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership grew its holdings in shares of PayPal by 284.0% during the fourth quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 7,804,334 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $666,100,000 after buying an additional 5,772,198 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of PayPal in the 3rd quarter valued at $387,435,000. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its stake in PayPal by 174.1% in the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 4,233,341 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $361,316,000 after acquiring an additional 2,689,162 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in PayPal during the 4th quarter worth about $135,537,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.32% of the company’s stock.

PayPal Price Performance

PayPal stock opened at $65.15 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $76.28 and a 200-day simple moving average of $80.82. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $64.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.25, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.52. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $56.97 and a 52-week high of $93.66.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $8.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.27 billion. PayPal had a net margin of 13.04% and a return on equity of 23.67%. PayPal’s revenue was up 4.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.48 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PayPal news, Director Gail J. Mcgovern sold 2,446 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.15, for a total value of $176,478.90. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 29,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,145,308.10. This trade represents a 7.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. BTIG Research reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of PayPal in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of PayPal from $92.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of PayPal from $94.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Finally, Citigroup restated an “outperform” rating on shares of PayPal in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $90.03.

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.