Westpac Banking Corp Sells 27,901 Shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. $PYPL

Westpac Banking Corp reduced its position in PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) by 78.1% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 7,830 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 27,901 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in PayPal were worth $525,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MUFG Securities EMEA plc raised its holdings in shares of PayPal by 100.4% in the 2nd quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc now owns 385 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 87,524 shares in the last quarter. Cloud Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in PayPal in the third quarter worth about $30,000. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PayPal during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Total Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of PayPal during the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in PayPal by 285.3% in the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 524 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 388 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.32% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO Chris Natali sold 1,213 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.49, for a total value of $49,114.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 404 shares in the company, valued at $16,357.96. This trade represents a 75.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Suzan Kereere sold 37,613 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.49, for a total value of $1,560,563.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 30,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,285,484.67. This represents a 54.83% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 42,304 shares of company stock valued at $1,749,493. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

PayPal Stock Performance

Shares of PYPL stock opened at $45.53 on Friday. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $38.46 and a one year high of $79.50. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $51.85 and its 200 day simple moving average is $61.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $41.92 billion, a PE ratio of 8.42, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $8.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.82 billion. PayPal had a net margin of 15.77% and a return on equity of 25.42%. PayPal’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.19 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current year.

PayPal Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. PayPal’s payout ratio is 10.35%.

More PayPal News

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Stripe explored a potential bid for all or parts of PayPal reignited takeover hopes and lifted speculative buyer interest that can push the share price higher on M&A premium expectations. PayPal Surges on Stripe Acquisition Interest
• Positive Sentiment: Some bullish commentaries argue PayPal’s cash generation and depressed valuation create upside (buyout/activist scenarios and long-term recovery narratives). This supports speculative accumulation at low prices. PayPal’s Brutal Reset Hides A Cash Machine
• Neutral Sentiment: Counterreports (Semafor/TechCrunch) say PayPal is not actively in sale talks, which removes some deal certainty and can cool takeover-driven rallies. PayPal might not be looking to sell itself, report
• Neutral Sentiment: The stock triggered trading halts during rumor-driven volatility (LULD), indicating elevated short-term trading risk and higher intraday swings for traders. PayPal Stock Halted on Stripe Rumor
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms have filed or solicited clients for securities class actions alleging disclosure issues tied to PayPal’s metrics and recent disclosures — increased litigation risk and potential settlements can pressure the stock and keep shares volatile. PayPal Holdings, Inc. Sued for Securities Law Violations
• Negative Sentiment: An analyst sell/downgrade highlights competitive weaknesses (notably Braintree economics) and an unattractive risk/reward, which can weigh on investor sentiment and institutional demand. Sell Rating on PayPal
• Negative Sentiment: Recent quarter showed a small EPS and revenue miss and management gave cautious near‑term guidance; that combination has kept downward pressure as investors focus on growth execution and margins. PYPL Falls 9.6% Despite Earnings Growth
• Negative Sentiment: Short interest has ticked up, and the company has been preparing defenses for potential activist campaigns — both signal investor skepticism and can amplify downside if guidance or legal headlines worsen.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently commented on PYPL shares. Robert W. Baird set a $52.00 price objective on shares of PayPal in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Argus reduced their price target on PayPal from $87.00 to $65.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of PayPal from $70.00 to $46.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on PayPal from $75.00 to $65.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, December 5th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $61.03.

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.