Traders Buy Large Volume of Call Options on PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL)

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Investors acquired 167,327 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 133% compared to the average volume of 71,839 call options.

PayPal Stock Down 11.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PYPL traded down $9.86 on Tuesday, hitting $79.65. 29,609,155 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,248,397. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.25. PayPal has a 1-year low of $55.77 and a 1-year high of $93.66. The company has a market capitalization of $79.85 billion, a PE ratio of 19.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.49 and a beta of 1.44. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $88.20 and its 200 day moving average is $79.26.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The credit services provider reported $1.19 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.08. PayPal had a return on equity of 23.44% and a net margin of 14.08%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.48 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that PayPal will post 4.58 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on PYPL shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of PayPal in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on PayPal from $94.00 to $101.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Bank of America raised PayPal from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $86.00 to $103.00 in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of PayPal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, PayPal has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.48.

Institutional Trading of PayPal

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC boosted its position in shares of PayPal by 22.6% in the fourth quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 4,516 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $385,000 after acquiring an additional 831 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its position in PayPal by 55.7% during the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 12,220 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,043,000 after buying an additional 4,370 shares in the last quarter. Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of PayPal by 46.8% in the fourth quarter. Hardman Johnston Global Advisors LLC now owns 397,824 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $33,954,000 after acquiring an additional 126,905 shares in the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in shares of PayPal in the 4th quarter valued at $1,348,000. Finally, Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in shares of PayPal during the 4th quarter valued at $2,157,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.32% of the company’s stock.

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.