Alps Advisors Inc. Trims Stake in eBay Inc. $EBAY

Alps Advisors Inc. cut its stake in eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) by 88.5% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 5,020 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock after selling 38,822 shares during the period. Alps Advisors Inc.’s holdings in eBay were worth $457,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in shares of eBay by 5.6% during the 2nd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 9,085,603 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $674,061,000 after purchasing an additional 478,410 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in eBay by 1.7% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,581,556 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $638,983,000 after buying an additional 140,160 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc grew its position in eBay by 7.8% during the second quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 3,810,634 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $282,838,000 after buying an additional 275,344 shares during the period. ABN AMRO Bank N.V. purchased a new position in eBay in the second quarter valued at $235,149,000. Finally, Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its position in shares of eBay by 5.9% in the third quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 2,817,489 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $256,251,000 after acquiring an additional 157,537 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.48% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at eBay

In other eBay news, SVP Cornelius Boone sold 4,462 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.94, for a total value of $374,540.28. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 91,921 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,715,848.74. This represents a 4.63% 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, SVP Julie A. Loeger sold 2,896 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.44, for a total transaction of $238,746.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 55,990 shares in the company, valued at $4,615,815.60. This trade represents a 4.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 44,590 shares of company stock valued at $4,000,814. Corporate insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

eBay Trading Up 3.7%

Shares of EBAY opened at $82.38 on Friday. eBay Inc. has a 52-week low of $58.71 and a 52-week high of $101.15. The stock has a market cap of $37.24 billion, a PE ratio of 17.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.38. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $88.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $89.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

EBAY has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut eBay from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 7th. TD Cowen reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of eBay in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Rothschild & Co Redburn dropped their price objective on eBay from $95.00 to $90.00 in a report on Friday, November 7th. Evercore boosted their price objective on eBay from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Benchmark upped their target price on eBay from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 29th. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, eBay currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $95.66.

eBay Company Profile

eBay Inc is a global e-commerce company that operates an online marketplace connecting individual consumers and businesses for the sale and purchase of new, used and collectible goods. Founded in 1995 by Pierre Omidyar and headquartered in San Jose, California, eBay grew from its early auction-style site into a diversified platform offering both auction-format listings and fixed-price “Buy It Now” transactions. The company completed an initial public offering in the late 1990s and has since evolved its platform and services to support a broad range of product categories and buyer preferences.

The company’s core business centers on its marketplace platform, which provides listing, search and transaction capabilities for millions of items across consumer goods, electronics, fashion, collectibles and more.