3,297,997 Shares in PayPal Holdings, Inc. $PYPL Bought by Equity Investment Corp

Equity Investment Corp purchased a new stake in PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 3,297,997 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $142,408,000. PayPal accounts for approximately 2.7% of Equity Investment Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of PayPal in the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new position in shares of PayPal during the third quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 457 shares during the period. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in PayPal during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Advocate Investing Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PayPal in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. 68.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Frank Keller sold 732 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.10, for a total value of $42,529.20. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 41,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,415,042.70. This trade represents a 1.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Chris Natali sold 1,337 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.10, for a total transaction of $77,679.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,216 shares in the company, valued at approximately $128,749.60. This represents a 37.63% decrease in their position. 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 10,612 shares of company stock valued at $484,534 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.63% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on PYPL shares. Daiwa Securities Group raised PayPal from a “hold” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. BNP Paribas Exane boosted their price target on shares of PayPal from $43.50 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Jefferies Financial Group raised PayPal from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of PayPal in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. They set a “market perform” rating and a $52.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on PayPal from $48.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $56.19.

Key Stories Impacting PayPal

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Takeover interest supports valuation. PayPal is reportedly in renewed sale discussions with a consortium involving Stripe and Advent International. The group previously submitted a bid of approximately $60.50 per share, while one analysis suggested a potential sale value of $70–$80 per share. PayPal reportedly in sale talks with consortium including Stripe and Advent PayPal Could Be Sold For $70-$80/Share
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see potential beyond PayPal’s checkout business. Piper Sandler raised its price target by more than 40% to $59, citing value in PayPal’s broader platform, although it retained a Neutral rating. Piper Sandler sees value beyond checkout
• Positive Sentiment: Operating trends remain mixed but constructive. Recent coverage points to total payment volume and Venmo growth, while PayPal’s latest reported quarter exceeded consensus estimates for earnings and revenue. Should You Buy, Sell or Hold PayPal Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: BNPL weakness has not materially spread to PayPal. Klarna’s outlook reduction triggered a sharp selloff in its shares, but PayPal and Affirm were described as largely shrugging off the news, suggesting limited immediate read-through for PayPal. Klarna craters on guidance cut while Affirm and PayPal shrug it off
• Negative Sentiment: Core checkout growth and competition remain concerns. Analysts cautioned that weak checkout expansion and pressure from rivals could undermine the turnaround, tempering the bullish impact of takeover rumors. TikTok’s exploration of peer-to-peer payments also highlights growing competition for digital-payment activity. TikTok explores peer-to-peer payments via direct messages

PayPal Stock Down 0.1%

NASDAQ:PYPL opened at $60.43 on Wednesday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $50.89 and its 200 day moving average price is $47.29. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.42, a PEG ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.29. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $38.46 and a 1-year high of $79.21.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The credit services provider reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $8.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.47 billion. PayPal had a net margin of 14.36% and a return on equity of 24.39%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.40 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.37 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PayPal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. PayPal’s payout ratio is presently 10.59%.

About PayPal

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.