World Investment Advisors LLC Purchases New Stake in eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY)

World Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor acquired 45,267 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,947,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its position in shares of eBay by 17.6% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 25,964,196 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $1,394,797,000 after purchasing an additional 3,880,649 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new stake in eBay in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $105,506,000. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in eBay in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $71,593,000. LSV Asset Management boosted its stake in shares of eBay by 22.2% during the 2nd quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 6,705,345 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $360,211,000 after buying an additional 1,216,885 shares during the period. Finally, Renaissance Technologies LLC purchased a new position in shares of eBay during the 2nd quarter valued at $49,924,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.48% of the company’s stock.

eBay Price Performance

Shares of eBay stock opened at $63.84 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $63.37 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $59.10. eBay Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $40.16 and a fifty-two week high of $67.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.25 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The company has a market cap of $30.58 billion, a PE ratio of 16.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 1.35.

eBay Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. This represents a $1.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.69%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. eBay’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently issued reports on EBAY shares. Citigroup lifted their price objective on eBay from $65.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered eBay from a “hold” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price target for the company from $60.00 to $52.00 in a report on Tuesday. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on eBay from $46.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 15th. Robert W. Baird reduced their target price on shares of eBay from $70.00 to $68.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $72.00 target price on shares of eBay in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $62.63.

Insider Activity at eBay

In other news, SVP Cornelius Boone sold 3,974 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.61, for a total transaction of $256,760.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 70,113 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,530,000.93. This trade represents a 5.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Stephen J. Priest sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.91, for a total transaction of $1,597,750.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 70,332 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,494,918.12. The trade was a 26.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,641 shares of company stock worth $3,370,974 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.38% of the company’s stock.

eBay Company Profile

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.