Essex Financial Services Inc. Acquires 894 Shares of eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY)

Essex Financial Services Inc. boosted its holdings in eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) by 27.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,177 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock after purchasing an additional 894 shares during the quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in eBay were worth $259,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in EBAY. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in eBay in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $105,506,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in eBay by 9,092.5% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 585,013 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $38,090,000 after purchasing an additional 578,649 shares during the period. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its position in shares of eBay by 599.3% during the 3rd quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 538,744 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $35,078,000 after acquiring an additional 461,708 shares during the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC bought a new position in shares of eBay during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,132,000. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in shares of eBay by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 9,151,026 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $573,220,000 after acquiring an additional 335,035 shares during the last quarter. 87.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

eBay Stock Performance

EBAY stock opened at $69.26 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $33.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.40, a PEG ratio of 2.15 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. eBay Inc. has a twelve month low of $40.83 and a twelve month high of $71.52. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $65.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $62.68.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on EBAY. Mizuho increased their target price on eBay from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of eBay in a research report on Monday, December 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on eBay from $60.00 to $58.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on eBay from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on eBay from $67.00 to $64.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have assigned a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, eBay currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $62.92.

Insider Activity at eBay

In related news, CFO Stephen J. Priest sold 1,033 shares of eBay stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.93, for a total value of $67,072.69. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 65,080 shares in the company, valued at $4,225,644.40. The trade was a 1.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jamie Iannone sold 5,625 shares of eBay stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.21, for a total value of $355,556.25. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 531,167 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,575,066.07. The trade was a 1.05 % 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 $1,746,065 over the last three months. 0.38% 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.