PayPal's (PYPL) Hold Rating Reaffirmed at Needham & Company LLC

Key Points

• Needham reaffirmed its “hold” rating on PayPal, consistent with the broader consensus: 32 analysts rate the stock Hold, compared with nine Buys and five Sells. The average price target is $56.42.
• PayPal shares rose 1.4% to $55.75, while the company reported adjusted EPS of $1.45, beating the $1.31 consensus estimate. However, revenue increased just 2% year over year to $8.58 billion, below the $8.71 billion analyst estimate.
• Institutional ownership remains substantial at 68.32%, with BlackRock and Bank of America among investors establishing new positions. Insiders sold 14,774 shares worth approximately $848,095 over the past 90 days.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold" rating restated by stock analysts at Needham & Company LLC in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Benzinga reports.

Several other research analysts also recently issued reports on PYPL. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price objective 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. Canaccord Genuity Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on PayPal from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of PayPal from $55.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price 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. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty-two have issued a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $56.42.

PayPal Stock Up 1.4%

PayPal stock traded up $0.76 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $55.75. The company's stock had a trading volume of 11,884,087 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,210,852. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. PayPal has a fifty-two week low of $38.46 and a fifty-two week high of $79.21. The company has a market cap of $47.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.51, a P/E/G ratio of 1.27 and a beta of 1.27. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $55.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $50.09.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The credit services provider reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.31 by $0.14. PayPal had a net margin of 14.36% and a return on equity of 24.39%. The company had revenue of $8.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.34 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that PayPal will post 5.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at PayPal

In other news, insider Suzan Kereere sold 3,379 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.72, for a total value of $188,277.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 30,983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,726,372.76. The trade was a 9.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Chris Natali sold 552 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.80, for a total transaction of $30,249.60. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 2,400 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $131,520. The trade was a 18.70% 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 have sold 14,774 shares of company stock valued at $848,095 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.63% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of PayPal

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in PayPal in the 2nd quarter valued at about $3,236,989,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in PayPal during the second quarter worth about $975,563,000. Primecap Management Co. CA acquired a new position in PayPal during the second quarter worth about $422,092,000. Corient Private Wealth LP bought a new stake in PayPal in the second quarter worth about $20,758,000. Finally, Amundi raised its position in PayPal by 227.6% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 13,804,208 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $624,364,000 after acquiring an additional 9,590,488 shares in the last quarter. 68.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key PayPal News

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Adjusted EPS beat expectations: PayPal reported adjusted earnings of $1.45 per share, above the $1.31 consensus estimate and up from $1.34 a year earlier. PayPal Q3 Earnings Top Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Full-year profit outlook raised: Management increased its 2026 adjusted earnings guidance, citing cost reductions, workforce efficiencies and progress in its turnaround strategy. PayPal is targeting approximately $700 million in cost savings by year-end. PayPal Raises 2026 Profit Forecast
• Positive Sentiment: Holiday-quarter profitability may exceed expectations: Reports indicated PayPal’s adjusted profit forecast for the upcoming quarter is above Wall Street views, supporting optimism that the turnaround is beginning to improve profitability. PayPal Raises Guidance as Turnaround Strategy Shows Promise
• Neutral Sentiment: Transaction activity grew, but the quality of growth remains under scrutiny: Payment volume increased, while merchant volume and several key metrics reportedly fell short of estimates. Investors are watching checkout trends, take rates and competitive pressure for evidence that growth can accelerate.
• Negative Sentiment: Revenue missed expectations: Third-quarter revenue rose only 2% year over year to $8.58 billion, below the $8.71 billion consensus estimate. The revenue shortfall initially pushed shares lower despite the earnings beat. PayPal Stock Falls on Q3 Revenue Miss
• Negative Sentiment: Growth and competitive concerns persist: Analysts remain cautious about market-share pressure, pricing and a potentially prolonged recovery. One recent bearish view maintained a $45 price target, below the current trading range. PayPal Sell Rating Reaffirmed

PayPal Company Profile

PayPal Holdings, Inc operates a global digital payments platform that enables consumers and businesses to send, receive, and manage money online and through mobile devices. Its services support online checkout, peer-to-peer payments, money transfers, payment processing, invoicing, and other commerce-related transactions.

The company's portfolio includes the PayPal and Venmo brands, Braintree's payment processing technology, and Xoom's international money transfer service. PayPal also offers merchant tools, digital wallets, payment solutions, and consumer financing products through its platform and related services.

PayPal traces its origins to 1998 and became an independent publicly traded company after separating from eBay in 2015.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.