Unique Wealth Strategies LLC Makes New Investment in eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY)

Unique Wealth Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 14,375 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock, valued at approximately $627,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in eBay by 50.7% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,594,272 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $69,523,000 after acquiring an additional 536,145 shares in the last quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of eBay by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC now owns 15,481 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $675,000 after purchasing an additional 381 shares in the last quarter. GHE LLC grew its stake in shares of eBay by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. GHE LLC now owns 17,480 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $762,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the period. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. raised its stake in eBay by 59.6% during the 4th quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 9,960 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $434,000 after buying an additional 3,718 shares during the period. Finally, Alaska Permanent Fund Corp bought a new position in eBay in the fourth quarter worth approximately $447,000. 87.48% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

eBay Stock Performance

NASDAQ:EBAY traded up $0.68 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $52.02. The stock had a trading volume of 4,985,631 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,369,263. eBay Inc. has a 12-month low of $37.17 and a 12-month high of $52.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 2.44 and a current ratio of 2.44. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $50.11 and a 200 day simple moving average of $44.55. The stock has a market cap of $26.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.03 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.51 billion. eBay had a net margin of 27.36% and a return on equity of 29.16%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.87 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that eBay Inc. will post 3.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

eBay declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 27th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the e-commerce company to purchase up to 8.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

eBay Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 11th were given a dividend of $0.27 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. This is a positive change from eBay’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.25. This represents a $1.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.08%. eBay’s payout ratio is presently 20.69%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Edward O. Garcia sold 1,165 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.03, for a total value of $50,129.95. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 31,888 shares in the company, valued at $1,372,140.64. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.21% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on eBay from $55.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of eBay in a report on Wednesday, January 10th. They set a “sell” rating and a $38.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com upgraded shares of eBay from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Susquehanna lifted their price target on eBay from $43.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised eBay from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, eBay has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $49.17.

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.