Sentiment About eBay Inc (EBAY) Not Too Good, Says Leigh Drogen

The sentiment people have about eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY) is not too good, Estimize CEO Leigh Drogen told Cory Johnson and Trish Regan on Bloomberg’s Street Smart.

eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY) has just reported its fourth quarter 2014 results. The company reported revenue at $4.9 billion, up 9% year-over-year. GAAP earnings was at $936 million, $0.75 per diluted share, and Non-GAAP earnings was at $1.1 billion, $0.90 per diluted share.

Though up, the company is not being viewed in a positive light, Drogen said in the discussion.

“The Estimize consensus was a penny above Wall Street so they came right in line and we’re actually seeing, based on all the news that just came out, eBay down about 2% after hours. The expectation was right there, but yes, the growth rate is not there, the multiple has been coming down for a little while [and] the sentiment around this company – especially the core business outside of PayPal – not too good,” Drogen said.

Meanwhile, Regan also brought up the news that eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY) is still in its standstill pact with Carl Icahn. Furthermore, the company also said that it will cut 7% of jobs or about 2,400 people.

The billionaire activist investor’s Icahn Capital LP is the biggest institutional investor in eBay Inc. The firm held about 45.83 million eBay shares by the end of September. Icahn behind the pressure for eBay Inc. to spin off its PayPal division.

According to Johnson, eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY) may benefit more if they wait for the growth of PayPal to start to slow down. He said that even though PayPal’s growth slows, it would still be great growth but for a separate company and eBay will have more upside if they spinoff PayPal then.

William B. Gray’s Orbis Investment Management is another big institutional investor in eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY). The firm reported about 16.44 million shares in the electronic commerce company by the end of the third quarter of 2014.