Howard Capital Management Inc. Cuts Stock Position in eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY)

Howard Capital Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) by 13.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,819 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock after selling 2,101 shares during the period. Howard Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in eBay were worth $936,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in eBay during the 4th quarter valued at about $27,000. Abound Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of eBay during the first quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. bought a new stake in shares of eBay during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of eBay during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in eBay in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.48% of the company’s stock.

eBay Trading Down 1.2%

NASDAQ:EBAY opened at $77.56 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $76.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $70.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $35.76 billion, a PE ratio of 18.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.26. eBay Inc. has a 12 month low of $53.74 and a 12 month high of $83.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17.

eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The e-commerce company reported $1.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.07. eBay had a net margin of 19.78% and a return on equity of 36.60%. The company had revenue of $2.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.18 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that eBay Inc. will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

eBay Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be given a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.50%. eBay’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.62%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on EBAY. Citizens Jmp raised eBay to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Truist Financial upped their target price on shares of eBay from $62.00 to $68.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $72.00 price target on shares of eBay in a research note on Wednesday, June 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of eBay from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Finally, Cfra Research upgraded shares of eBay to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Thursday, June 5th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have given a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $70.42.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Julie A. Loeger sold 127,070 shares of eBay stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.43, for a total value of $8,822,470.10. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 123,282 shares in the company, valued at $8,559,469.26. This trade represents a 50.76% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jamie Iannone sold 12,644 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $79.06, for a total value of $999,634.64. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 325,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $25,698,690.18. This represents a 3.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 347,222 shares of company stock worth $25,143,522 over the last ninety days. 0.64% of the stock is owned by 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.