PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Stock Crosses Above 50 Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) shares crossed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $55.63 and traded as high as $56.63. PayPal shares last traded at $56.09, with a volume of 19,287,144 shares traded.

Key PayPal News

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PayPal reported third-quarter adjusted earnings of $1.45 per share, above the $1.31 analyst consensus, and raised its full-year adjusted earnings outlook. Management also indicated that expected holiday-quarter profit should exceed Wall Street expectations. PayPal raises 2026 profit forecast as turnaround gains traction
• Positive Sentiment: Payment volume rose 6% to $487.1 billion, supported by higher transaction activity and strong Venmo growth. The company also highlighted operating-margin expansion, cost controls and a goal of achieving approximately $700 million in savings by year-end. PayPal’s Q3 Earnings Beat Estimates on Venmo Growth, TPV Rises
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholder returns provided additional support, with PayPal repurchasing roughly $1.5 billion of stock and announcing a quarterly dividend of $0.14. PayPal Holdings Stock Rises on Strong Payment Growth, Buybacks and Dividend News
• Neutral Sentiment: Chief Executive Enrique Lores emphasized that PayPal’s standalone turnaround is gaining traction, while reports said he acknowledged takeover discussions but continues to favor executing the independent-company plan. Needham maintained a “hold” rating and BTIG reaffirmed “neutral.” PayPal CEO Confirms Offer Talks But Bets on the Standalone Plan
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue increased only 2% year over year to $8.58 billion, below the $8.71 billion consensus, while merchant volume also missed expectations. Investors remain concerned that branded checkout is not growing, raising questions about competition, pricing pressure and the pace of PayPal’s recovery. PayPal Just Raised Its Profit Forecast, and the Stock Barely Moved. Here’s Why
• Negative Sentiment: Adjusted net income reportedly declined 3%, and some investors viewed the weaker core checkout trends and cautious near-term growth outlook as outweighing the earnings beat. This explains why PYPL’s reaction was muted despite higher guidance.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on PYPL. Clear Str upgraded PayPal to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Truist Financial upped their price objective on PayPal from $53.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on PayPal from $48.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Monday, September 28th. Finally, Bank of America began coverage on shares of PayPal in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. They issued an “underperform” rating for the company. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty-two have assigned a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, PayPal presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $56.56.

PayPal Stock Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average is $55.63 and its 200 day moving average is $50.05.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The credit services provider reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.14. The company had revenue of $8.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.71 billion. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.34 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at PayPal

In related news, insider Frank Keller sold 4,612 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.43, for a total transaction of $255,643.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 41,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,304,058.81. This trade represents a 9.99% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Chris Natali sold 552 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.80, for a total value of $30,249.60. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $131,520. The trade was a 18.70% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 12,705 shares of company stock worth $727,886 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PayPal

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PYPL. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of PayPal by 56.2% in the third quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 2,642 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $139,000 after acquiring an additional 951 shares during the period. VestGen Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of PayPal in the third quarter valued at about $212,000. Conning Inc. bought a new position in PayPal during the third quarter worth about $235,000. Latitude Advisors LLC bought a new position in PayPal during the third quarter worth about $105,000. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC increased its position in PayPal by 9.7% during the third quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 17,612 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $925,000 after acquiring an additional 1,563 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.32% of the company’s stock.

PayPal Company Profile

PayPal Holdings, Inc operates a global digital payments platform that enables consumers and businesses to send, receive, and manage money online and through mobile devices. Its services support online checkout, peer-to-peer payments, money transfers, payment processing, invoicing, and other commerce-related transactions.

The company’s portfolio includes the PayPal and Venmo brands, Braintree’s payment processing technology, and Xoom’s international money transfer service. PayPal also offers merchant tools, digital wallets, payment solutions, and consumer financing products through its platform and related services.

PayPal traces its origins to 1998 and became an independent publicly traded company after separating from eBay in 2015.