What happened
Shares of eBay (EBAY 0.31%) outpaced the market last month, gaining 20% compared to an 8% spike in the S&P 500, according to data provided by S&P Global Market Intelligence.
The rally erased some of shareholders' recent paper losses, but eBay is still trailing the market over the past year, with a decline of about 20% compared to a 1% downtick in the S&P 500.
Image source: Getty Images.
So what
eBay benefited from the market's historic surge in January, given that stocks enjoyed their best start to a year in three decades. However, those gains were further cemented by earnings results that met investors' approval. The online marketplace giant said late in the month that its sales growth slowed further during the key holiday shopping quarter. The company paired that bad news with good financial news, including rising profitability and robust cash flow.
Check out the latest eBay earnings call transcript.
Now what
CEO Devin Wenig and his team see sales gains slowing even further in 2019 as the company works to lay the foundation for better growth in 2020 and beyond. In the meantime, investors can expect to see more financial wins from this efficient business, which is now officially a dividend-paying stock.
