EBay Lowers 2014 Sales Estimates Due to Economic Fears

Oct 16, 2014 04:30 PM EDT | Matt Mercuro

EBay cut its full-year revenue forecast on Wednesday, which could mean a weaker-than-expected holiday shopping season for the e-commerce company as it looks to split from its fast-growing payments arm, PayPal.

Ebay's report comes as weak economic data from the U.S. and China fan fears of a global slowdown, forcing investors to re-examine the world economy only just emerging from one of the worst recessions ever.

"We've gotten indications from some luxury retailers over the last couple of days that times have been more challenging," said Scott Kessler, equity analyst at S&P Capital IQ.

"There are a lot of question marks when it comes to the sentiment on spending of consumers as we approach the holiday shopping season," Kessler added, according to Reuters.

EBay shares dropped more than 3 percent in after-hours trading. U.S. retail sales, which account for around one-third of consumer spending, recording their first decline since January in September.

Some analysts are concerned over eBay's marketplaces division, which grew less than some forecast.

Kessler said that eBay's notable exposure to Europe could have also played a role in depressing its outlook, according to Reuters.

EBay earned 68 cents per share in the third quarter, which is in line with the average analyst estimate of 67 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

EBay announced a couple of weeks ago that it was spinning off its PayPal payments unit in 2015.

"EBay cut its full-year revenue outlook to between $17.85 billion and $17.95 billion from its previous range of $18 billion to $18.3 billion," Reuters reported.

The company is also expected to post fourth-quarter revenue of less than $5 billion, falling short of the $5.2 billion expected by Wall Street. 

EBay expects fourth-quarter earnings per share between 88 cents and 91 cents, while Wall Street expects 91 cents. 

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