EBay lays off 2,400 after earnings tank

Agree 100%. In the beginning, eBay was like a benevolent host out to impress sellers and to lure them in. And then, like an alcoholic at a dinner party, eBay's personality changed. At first just a bit loud and gregarious, but as time wore on, more and more abusive and authoritarian. And now, after spilling one too many drinks on the guests, they're all more inclined to punch their host in the nose and walk out the door than to continue doing business with him.

 

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I do not see any long range problems with eBay as a company due to a 7% possible layoff. They are just a few dollars off of the 2 year high even after that announcement. I think the reason this thread has continued isn't what is going to happen to Ebay as a company, but likes/dislikes of individuals who for the most part aren't going to leave them in any manner. Some may say they are 'never' going to use eBay and mean it, but try to find a safer, less expensive way to have a transaction. They are trimming operations and possibly tightening up cash flow to start another business opportunity to compliment/replace PayPal, but it is hard to fear for a 70 Billion dollar company with a PEG ratio of 1.64, and about 10% yearly earning growth; it is hard to argue its success. It isn't going broke, it grew beyond its infrastructure and I would suspect it might try a few tweaks, but mainly feels it is on the right track with its policies. If I owned the stock I certainly wouldn't sell it at this news.

 

Reminds me of Walmart. Everyone talks a good game about how much they hate Walmart . yet if Walmart was its own country it has income comparable to around the 25th largest economy of countries in the world last I checked. Even on South Park they have an episode where everyone says they are going to boycott Walmart yet everyone shops there anyway.

People vote with their feet. It is very popular on coin talk to bash ebay but they are a great venue. They offer at the time of me writing this 149,488 pcgs and ngc us coins. No one else even gets an order of magnitude close to them. Say all you want about how much you hate them they are only getting bigger in coin sales year after year.

A great many vocal people here hate ebay, yet there must be a reason they are the worlds largest coin dealer by a country mile. Hate them all you want you may be boycotting but given their coin sales those protesting by not using eBay are a small minority.

 

Many well thought out posts regarding eBay. I like it. I don't love it, but there are very few shopping venues that I would say that about.

It's the world's largest garage sale with buyer protection. I'm not a seller, but I understand their concerns about some of the policies. I have bought and will continue to buy on eBay.

eBay is not going broke. Key financial data from Yahoo finance:
Income Statement
Revenue (ttm): 17.90B
Revenue Per Share (ttm): 14.31
Qtrly Revenue Growth (yoy): 8.60%
Gross Profit (ttm): 11.01B
EBITDA (ttm)6: 5.00B
Net Income Avl to Common (ttm): -41.00M
Diluted EPS (ttm): -0.03
Qtrly Earnings Growth (yoy): 10.10%

 

LOL! Yeah... Hey everyone! Look at all this money we have now. Where'd this come from? Oh yeah, former employees salaries!

Might put a company back on track, at the expense of derailing the careers of a couple thousand employees deemed expendable for the bottom line.

I'd like to see a major US company actually fight their way out of profit loss by NOT laying off, retaining those jobs and then being optimistic about the future plans, instead of the typical business model of slashing the cost of salaries and benefits paid out. Seems also an expense to have waited until the new calendar year to cut jobs having the employees on the current year's books.

 

Hopefully the 2,400 they are laying are are their outsourced employees in India. I hate when I call and get them!