Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. Purchases New Stake in PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL)

Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. purchased a new stake in shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 5,640 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $481,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PYPL. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd bought a new position in PayPal in the 3rd quarter worth $26,000. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton raised its holdings in PayPal by 67.6% in the 4th quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 310 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in PayPal by 344.3% in the 4th quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 351 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 272 shares in the last quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp raised its holdings in PayPal by 186.1% in the 3rd quarter. Planning Capital Management Corp now owns 412 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in PayPal in the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. 68.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Gail J. Mcgovern sold 2,446 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.15, for a total value of $176,478.90. Following the transaction, the director now owns 29,734 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,145,308.10. This trade represents a 7.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on PYPL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated an “overweight” rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday. Barclays increased their price target on shares of PayPal from $92.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on shares of PayPal from $85.00 to $76.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Bank of America upgraded shares of PayPal from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $86.00 to $103.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $90.03.

PayPal Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PYPL opened at $71.07 on Friday. 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 company has a market cap of $70.30 billion, a PE ratio of 17.72, a PEG ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.44. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $83.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.05. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $56.97 and a 52-week high of $93.66.

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

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.