PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Trading Up 3.1% – Time to Buy?

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) shares shot up 3.1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $40.37 and last traded at $40.29. 25,036,937 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 1% from the average session volume of 24,682,432 shares. The stock had previously closed at $39.08.

Key Stories Impacting PayPal

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PayPal announced an agentic AI travel partnership with Sabre and Mindtrip — a move that highlights PayPal’s AI and commerce strategy and could expand payments volume in travel and bookings. Sabre, PayPal, and Mindtrip partner
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage notes Venmo momentum and PayPal’s AI investments as potential growth drivers vs. competitors — these business positives may support a longer-term recovery if execution improves. PayPal vs. Block
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts and outlets are parsing next steps after the Q4 miss and CEO transition; pieces summarize strategic options but offer no immediate catalyst. What’s next after Q4 crash
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms (Kessler Topaz; Pomerantz) have opened investor investigations into PayPal, increasing legal/liability risk and weighing on sentiment. Kessler Topaz investigation notice Pomerantz investor alert
• Negative Sentiment: Analysts have cut ratings and targets — Zacks moved PayPal to a “Strong Sell” and several firms trimmed EPS/price targets (e.g., Daiwa to $42) — pressuring the stock. Zacks downgrade Daiwa cuts price target
• Negative Sentiment: Market commentary highlights the scale of recent share losses and lingering execution issues; retail sentiment has turned bearish and shares have plunged year-to-date. Execution crisis coverage
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue missed expectations and management change was flagged after Q4, creating short-term uncertainty around guidance and execution. Revenue miss & CEO change

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on PYPL. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of PayPal from $91.00 to $59.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Evercore reduced their price target on shares of PayPal from $65.00 to $40.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on PayPal from $70.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Compass Point upgraded PayPal from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $51.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reduced their target price on PayPal from $60.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 9th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Hold rating and five have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PayPal presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $61.03.

PayPal Trading Up 3.1%

The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $55.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.10. The stock has a market cap of $37.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.04 and a beta of 1.43.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The credit services provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.29 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $8.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.82 billion. PayPal had a net margin of 15.77% and a return on equity of 25.42%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.19 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current year.

PayPal Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be given a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. PayPal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.35%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Suzan Kereere sold 4,162 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.84, for a total transaction of $249,054.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 30,983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,854,022.72. This represents a 11.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Frank Keller sold 3,478 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.20, for a total transaction of $139,815.60. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 51,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,072,993.40. This represents a 6.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PayPal

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its position in PayPal by 15,233.3% during the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 460 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 457 shares during the period. MUFG Securities EMEA plc raised its stake in shares of PayPal by 100.4% during the second quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc now owns 385 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 87,524 shares in the last quarter. Cloud Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of PayPal during the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors bought a new position in PayPal in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Advocate Investing Services LLC bought a new position in PayPal in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. 68.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PayPal Company Profile

PayPal Holdings, Inc operates a global digital payments platform that enables consumers and merchants to send and receive payments online, on mobile devices and at the point of sale. The company provides a broad set of payment solutions, including a digital wallet, merchant payment processing, checkout services, invoicing and fraud-management tools. PayPal’s platform is designed to support e-commerce, in-person retail and person-to-person transfers, targeting both individual consumers and businesses of varying sizes.

Key products and services in PayPal’s portfolio include the PayPal wallet and checkout ecosystem, the Venmo peer-to-peer mobile app, Braintree’s developer-focused payment gateway, Xoom for international money transfers, and PayPal Credit and buy-now-pay-later options.