PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Trading 1.2% Higher on Analyst Upgrade

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL)’s stock price rose 1.2% during trading on Tuesday after Cantor Fitzgerald raised their price target on the stock from $54.00 to $60.00. Cantor Fitzgerald currently has a neutral rating on the stock. PayPal traded as high as $58.56 and last traded at $58.54. Approximately 9,728,197 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 50% from the average session volume of 19,424,172 shares. The stock had previously closed at $57.87.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on PYPL. Telsey Advisory Group lowered PayPal to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $50.00 target price on shares of PayPal in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. William Blair restated a “market perform” rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of PayPal from $55.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $55.67.

Insider Transactions at PayPal

In related news, CAO Chris Natali sold 1,337 shares of the business’s 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 owned 2,216 shares in the company, valued at $128,749.60. The trade was a 37.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Suzan Kereere sold 3,379 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.79, for a total transaction of $144,587.41. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 30,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,325,762.57. The trade was a 9.83% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 10,612 shares of company stock valued at $484,534 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.63% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about PayPal

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PayPal shares gained more than 32% in July—one of their strongest monthly performances—after the company delivered a second-quarter earnings beat and raised its full-year outlook. Buyout speculation involving potential bidders including Stripe and Advent has added another catalyst. PYPL Stock Clocked Its Best Month Ever in July
• Positive Sentiment: One market view remains that PayPal is deeply undervalued, whether or not a transaction occurs. That thesis is supported by the stock’s relatively low valuation and the possibility that improving execution could unlock shareholder value independently of a deal. PayPal Still Deeply Undervalued
• Neutral Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald raised its price target from $54 to $60 but kept a Neutral rating, indicating that analysts see limited additional upside after the recent rebound. Benzinga analyst update
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical traders are weighing the earnings-driven turnaround against an overbought relative-strength reading, which could encourage consolidation following the July surge. PayPal Shares Pause as Turnaround Momentum Collides With Overbought RSI
• Negative Sentiment: PayPal’s chief accounting officer sold 38% of his directly held shares. Although the sale may be personal and does not necessarily signal deteriorating fundamentals, insider selling can weigh on sentiment after the stock’s recent rebound. PayPal Chief Accounting Officer Share Sale

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in PayPal by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,989 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $596,000 after purchasing an additional 924 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PayPal during the fourth quarter worth $248,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of PayPal by 41.5% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,470 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $332,000 after buying an additional 1,310 shares during the last quarter. United Bank increased its position in shares of PayPal by 40.1% in the 2nd quarter. United Bank now owns 17,388 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,292,000 after acquiring an additional 4,974 shares during the period. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. raised its stake in PayPal by 17.9% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 18,909 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,405,000 after acquiring an additional 2,865 shares during the last quarter. 68.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PayPal Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $47.30 and a 200-day moving average of $47.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29. The company has a market cap of $50.08 billion, a PE ratio of 11.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.29.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The credit services provider reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $8.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.47 billion. PayPal had a return on equity of 24.39% and a net margin of 14.36%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.40 EPS. Equities analysts predict that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.35 earnings per share for the current year.

PayPal Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be issued a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. PayPal’s dividend payout ratio is 10.59%.

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.