PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Shares Up 1.2% After Analyst Upgrade

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) shares rose 1.2% during mid-day trading on Monday 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 $58.25 and last traded at $57.87. Approximately 7,981,680 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 59% from the average daily volume of 19,481,566 shares. The stock had previously closed at $57.21.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on PYPL. Argus set a $70.00 price target on shares of PayPal in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of PayPal from $46.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of PayPal from $63.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley set a $45.00 target price on shares of PayPal in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, BNP Paribas Exane increased their price target on shares of PayPal from $43.50 to $52.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 21st. 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other PayPal news, insider Suzan Kereere sold 3,379 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.79, for a total transaction of $144,587.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 30,983 shares in the company, valued at $1,325,762.57. This represents a 9.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed 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 on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.10, for a total value of $77,679.70. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,216 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $128,749.60. The trade was a 37.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold 10,612 shares of company stock worth $484,534 over the last three months. 0.63% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

PayPal News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PayPal’s second-quarter results exceeded expectations, with adjusted EPS of $1.38 versus the $1.28 consensus and revenue of $8.68 billion versus estimates of $8.47 billion. Revenue increased approximately 5% year over year, while management also raised its full-year outlook. Venmo monetization and Braintree expansion were cited as areas of progress. PayPal Shares Pause as Turnaround Momentum Collides With Overbought RSI
• Positive Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald raised its PayPal price target from $54 to $60 while maintaining a neutral rating. The higher target reflects improved earnings momentum, although it implies limited upside from recent trading levels. Benzinga Analyst Update
• Neutral Sentiment: Speculation continues that Stripe and Advent could pursue PayPal, and market commentators are discussing whether other potential bidders might emerge. No transaction has been confirmed, so the takeover narrative may support the stock but remains uncertain. Who Else Could Make a Bid for PayPal?
• Neutral Sentiment: PayPal was among the financial sector’s strongest performers in July, gaining roughly 30%. The sizable rally has improved sentiment but also leaves the shares more vulnerable to profit-taking. Financial Sector Tops the S&P 500 in July
• Negative Sentiment: Technical analysts say PYPL is approaching overbought conditions following its turnaround rally, potentially limiting near-term gains despite the earnings beat and improved outlook. A separate recession comparison concluded that American Express would likely prove more resilient than PayPal in a downturn, highlighting macroeconomic risk to the fintech. Which Financial Stock Would Hold Up Better in a Recession: PayPal or American Express?
• Negative Sentiment: Investor discussions also flagged Morgan Stanley’s underweight downgrade and reduced price target, alongside substantial net insider selling over the past six months. These signals may temper enthusiasm even as operating results improve.

Institutional Trading of PayPal

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bard Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in PayPal during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Allied Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of PayPal during the second quarter worth $25,000. Robinswood Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of PayPal during the first quarter worth $26,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its holdings in shares of PayPal by 15,233.3% during the fourth 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 last quarter. Finally, Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PayPal in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. 68.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PayPal Stock Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $47.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $47.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The company has a market capitalization of $49.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 1.33.

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

PayPal Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be given a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. PayPal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.