Traders Buy Large Volume of Call Options on eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY)

eBay Inc. (NASDAQ:EBAY) saw unusually large options trading on Monday. Investors bought 8,935 call options on the company. This is an increase of 67% compared to the average volume of 5,354 call options.

More eBay News

Here are the key news stories impacting eBay this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley named eBay its top internet pick, maintained an Overweight rating, and raised its price target to $132 from $127. The firm described eBay as the “NYSE for used items” and said its live-shopping business could accelerate marketplace growth. eBay Named Morgan Stanley’s Top Internet Pick
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are responding to eBay Live’s growth potential. Morgan Stanley’s thesis is that livestreamed auctions and interactive shopping can attract buyers, increase engagement, and create a new growth engine ahead of the holiday selling season. Why eBay Is Morgan Stanley’s Top Pick
• Positive Sentiment: eBay is expanding its live-auction push before the holidays, potentially giving the marketplace additional visibility and transaction volume during its seasonally important fourth quarter. eBay Makes Live Auction Move
• Positive Sentiment: Options activity added to the bullish tone: traders purchased 8,935 call options, approximately 67% above average daily call volume, indicating increased speculative interest in further upside.
• Neutral Sentiment: Attention is rising ahead of the next earnings report, with analysts focused on gross merchandise volume, holiday demand, and whether live commerce can support sustained growth. eBay’s latest reported quarter beat consensus estimates for both earnings and revenue.
• Negative Sentiment: Risks include valuation and insider selling. The stock is near its annual peak, while reported insider transactions show sales and no purchases over the past six months. A lower price target from Wells Fargo and possible margin pressure could limit additional gains if operating results disappoint.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on EBAY. Mizuho set a $110.00 price objective on eBay in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $133.00 target price (up from $115.00) on shares of eBay in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of eBay from $92.00 to $91.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Citizens Jmp downgraded shares of eBay from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price target on shares of eBay from $110.00 to $106.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating, sixteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, eBay has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $115.24.

Insider Buying and Selling at eBay

In other eBay news, CEO Jamie Iannone sold 11,110 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.55, for a total value of $1,205,990.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 253,211 shares in the company, valued at $27,486,054.05. This represents a 4.20% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, SVP Jordan Sweetnam sold 1,014 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $101.39, for a total value of $102,809.46. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 35,546 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,604,008.94. The trade was a 2.77% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 34,344 shares of company stock worth $3,635,567 over the last quarter. 0.67% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On eBay

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC grew its stake in eBay by 61.6% during the third quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 15,584 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $1,745,000 after acquiring an additional 5,940 shares in the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital lifted its stake in eBay by 12.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 11,923 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $1,335,000 after purchasing an additional 1,325 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in eBay by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 19,796 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $2,099,000 after purchasing an additional 1,122 shares in the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in eBay by 15.4% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 8,674 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock worth $920,000 after purchasing an additional 1,156 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Westwind Capital boosted its holdings in shares of eBay by 5.7% during the 3rd quarter. Westwind Capital now owns 13,604 shares of the e-commerce company’s stock valued at $1,443,000 after purchasing an additional 737 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 87.48% of the company’s stock.

eBay Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:EBAY traded up $1.66 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $116.31. 935,818 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,891,403. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. eBay has a 52-week low of $78.03 and a 52-week high of $119.31. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $106.80 and its 200 day simple moving average is $107.23. The company has a market cap of $51.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.08, a PEG ratio of 2.97 and a beta of 1.33.

eBay (NASDAQ:EBAY) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The e-commerce company reported $1.60 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50 by $0.10. eBay had a return on equity of 47.88% and a net margin of 18.50%. The company had revenue of $3.13 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.37 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 14.8% compared to the same quarter last year. eBay has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 1.360-1.420 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that eBay will post 4.87 EPS for the current year.

eBay Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 11th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 28th were given a dividend of $0.31 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 28th. This represents a $1.24 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. eBay’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 25.67%.

eBay Company Profile

eBay Inc (NASDAQ: EBAY) operates a global online marketplace that connects millions of buyers and sellers. The platform enables individuals, small businesses and larger retailers to list and purchase new, used and refurbished merchandise across categories such as electronics, fashion, collectibles, automotive parts, home goods and industrial products.

The company generates revenue primarily through fees charged to sellers for listing and selling items, along with advertising services and other marketplace-related offerings.