Cullen Investment Group LTD. Acquires New Stake in eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY)

Cullen Investment Group LTD. acquired a new stake in shares of eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor acquired 4,761 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock, valued at approximately $208,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new stake in eBay during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of eBay in the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Almanack Investment Partners LLC. purchased a new position in shares of eBay in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of eBay in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Gyon Technologies Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of eBay in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors own 87.48% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Edward O. Garcia sold 1,165 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.03, for a total value of $50,129.95. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 31,888 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,372,140.64. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.21% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EBAY has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group raised their price target on eBay from $46.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Mizuho raised their price target on eBay from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on eBay in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. They issued a “sell” rating and a $38.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com raised eBay from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday. Finally, Susquehanna raised their target price on eBay from $43.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $49.21.

eBay Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of EBAY stock opened at $50.25 on Wednesday. eBay Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.17 and a 12-month high of $52.93. The company has a current ratio of 2.44, a quick ratio of 2.44 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $48.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $44.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.33.

eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The e-commerce company reported $1.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.04. eBay had a return on equity of 29.16% and a net margin of 27.36%. The firm had revenue of $2.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.51 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.87 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that eBay Inc. will post 3.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

eBay declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, February 27th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the e-commerce company to buy up to 8.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

eBay Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 11th were paid a dividend of $0.27 per share. This is a boost from eBay’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.15%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. eBay’s payout ratio is presently 20.69%.

eBay 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.