Benchmark Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) Stock

eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) had its price objective lifted by investment analysts at Benchmark from $65.00 to $75.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “buy” rating on the e-commerce company’s stock. Benchmark’s price objective would suggest a potential upside of 19.02% from the company’s previous close.

Several other analysts also recently issued reports on EBAY. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of eBay in a research note on Monday, December 16th. Barclays set a $72.00 price objective on eBay and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Citigroup lifted their target price on eBay from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of eBay from $58.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of eBay from $61.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seventeen have issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $64.58.

eBay Trading Down 8.9 %

Shares of eBay stock traded down $6.12 during trading on Thursday, hitting $63.02. The stock had a trading volume of 5,515,536 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,970,683. The company has a quick ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 1.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14. The company has a market capitalization of $30.18 billion, a PE ratio of 15.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.35. eBay has a 1 year low of $46.53 and a 1 year high of $71.61. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $66.24 and a 200 day simple moving average of $63.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Jamie Iannone sold 5,625 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.38, for a total value of $350,887.50. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 542,248 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $33,825,430.24. This trade represents a 1.03 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Stephen J. Priest sold 5,252 shares of eBay stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.63, for a total value of $334,184.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 65,080 shares in the company, valued at $4,141,040.40. The trade was a 7.47 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 27,149 shares of company stock worth $1,746,065 in the last quarter. 0.38% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On eBay

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of EBAY. Wealth Group Ltd. bought a new stake in eBay in the 3rd quarter valued at $543,000. PFG Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of eBay during the third quarter valued at about $320,000. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of eBay by 2.4% during the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 52,517 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $3,419,000 after buying an additional 1,241 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its stake in shares of eBay by 33.3% in the third quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 24,424 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $1,590,000 after buying an additional 6,103 shares during the period. Finally, Measured Wealth Private Client Group LLC acquired a new stake in eBay during the third quarter worth about $226,000. Institutional investors own 87.48% of the company’s stock.

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.