Stephens Cuts PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Price Target to $45.00

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) had its price target reduced by Stephens from $65.00 to $45.00 in a research note released on Wednesday,MarketScreener reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the credit services provider’s stock.

PYPL has been the subject of several other reports. Daiwa Securities Group cut PayPal from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $77.00 to $61.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Mizuho set a $60.00 target price on PayPal in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $44.00 price target on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price objective on shares of PayPal from $75.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, December 5th. Finally, Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and set a $68.00 price objective (down previously from $93.00) on shares of PayPal in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty have issued a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, PayPal has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $64.28.

PayPal Trading Up 1.3%

NASDAQ PYPL opened at $40.42 on Wednesday. PayPal has a 52 week low of $38.88 and a 52 week high of $79.50. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $57.18 and a two-hundred day moving average of $64.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.21 billion, a PE ratio of 7.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.77 and a beta of 1.43.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The credit services provider reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.29 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $8.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.82 billion. PayPal had a return on equity of 25.42% and a net margin of 15.77%.PayPal’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.19 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that PayPal will post 5.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PayPal Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. PayPal’s payout ratio is currently 10.35%.

Insider Transactions at PayPal

In other PayPal news, EVP Aaron Webster sold 9,282 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $66.29, for a total transaction of $615,303.78. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 35,699 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,366,486.71. This represents a 20.64% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Suzan Kereere sold 4,162 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.84, for a total value of $249,054.08. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 30,983 shares in the company, valued at $1,854,022.72. This trade represents a 11.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.08% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PayPal

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hilltop National Bank acquired a new position in PayPal in the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. MUFG Securities EMEA plc boosted its holdings in shares of PayPal by 100.4% in the second quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc now owns 385 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 87,524 shares in the last quarter. Cloud Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of PayPal during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new position in PayPal during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in PayPal during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. 68.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PayPal News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Deep-value case and buyback/dividend plan underpin a near-term bargain narrative; bulls point to low forward P/E, strong free cash flow and discretionary buybacks/new dividend as a potential floor. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Some investors view a new CEO as a catalyst — profiles of Enrique Lores suggest his turnaround/operational experience could help execution if appointed. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Several bullish commentaries argue long-term investors can be rewarded if PayPal stabilizes its product growth and execution — fueling bargain-hunting bounces. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Compass Point moved to Neutral, reflecting that some uncertainty (CEO transition, guidance) is now priced in — not a clear buy/sell signal. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts are split: many cut targets and some keep “buy”/“outperform” calls, leaving consensus views mixed and volatility likely as estimates are re-worked. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Q4 results disappointed — EPS and revenue missed expectations and management issued lower 2026 guidance, which triggered the initial selloff and higher volatility. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: CEO Alex Chriss was fired amid the branded-checkout slowdown and guidance cut; leadership turnover increases execution risk during a sensitive transition. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/litigation risk surfaced: a securities investigation was announced into the gap between prior outlook and reported results, adding legal and disclosure uncertainty. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Heavy analyst price-target cuts, downgrades and visible insider selling amplified the selloff and investor caution this week. Read More.

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.