Gradient Investments LLC Boosts Stock Position in PayPal Holdings, Inc. $PYPL

Key Points

• Gradient Investments increased its PayPal position by 14.5% in the second quarter, adding 62,309 shares for a total of 491,736 shares valued at approximately $21.2 million. Institutional investors collectively own 68.32% of PayPal.
• PayPal reported quarterly adjusted earnings of $1.38 per share, beating estimates of $1.28, while revenue reached $8.68 billion, up 4.8% year over year. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.14, representing a 0.9% annual yield.
• Analysts maintain a broadly cautious outlook, with a consensus “Hold” rating and average price target of $55.72, despite several recent target increases and one upgrade to “outperform.” PayPal’s valuation appears attractive, but weaker growth leaves the investment case dependent on successful cost-cutting and turnaround efforts.

Gradient Investments LLC raised its holdings in PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL - Free Report) by 14.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 491,736 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 62,309 shares during the quarter. Gradient Investments LLC owned 0.06% of PayPal worth $21,233,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Maia Wealth LLC grew its stake in PayPal by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Maia Wealth LLC now owns 6,404 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $424,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the period. GeoWealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of PayPal by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 3,214 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $216,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares during the period. Formidable Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of PayPal by 0.8% during the 1st quarter. Formidable Asset Management LLC now owns 25,937 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $1,173,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the period. KPP Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PayPal by 3.3% during the first quarter. KPP Advisory Services LLC now owns 6,625 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $300,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of PayPal by 3.5% in the first quarter. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,110 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $322,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the period. 68.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting PayPal

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PayPal continues to screen as a value opportunity after its substantial multiyear decline. Analysts point to relatively attractive valuation metrics, earnings performance above consensus, and ongoing cost-efficiency and turnaround efforts as potential catalysts. Here’s Why PayPal Is a Strong Value Stock
• Positive Sentiment: PayPal was highlighted in a payments-industry outlook alongside Visa, Mastercard, Fidelity and WEX, keeping attention on the company’s potential relative value and competitive position. Zacks Industry Outlook: Visa, Mastercard, PayPal, Fidelity and WEX
• Positive Sentiment: An analyst upgrade provided additional support for PayPal’s investment case, reinforcing the view that the shares may be undervalued following their long-term decline. PayPal Trading Up After Analyst Upgrade
• Neutral Sentiment: Activist investor Carl Icahn is urging eBay to overhaul its board and spin off PayPal, citing governance concerns and potential conflicts. A separation could increase PayPal’s strategic independence, but the proposal remains uncertain and primarily targets eBay. What Does eBay Face After Carl Icahn Demands a Board Overhaul?
• Negative Sentiment: PayPal’s shares remain below the $60.50 bid previously rejected by its board, signaling that investors are skeptical a transaction will materialize or that the company can justify a higher valuation without further operational proof. PayPal Still Trades Below the $60.50 Bid Its Board Turned Down
• Negative Sentiment: Although PayPal appears inexpensive on earnings, analysts also flag weaker growth, leaving investors dependent on successful execution of the turnaround and cost-cutting plans. PayPal Stock Looks Undervalued on Earnings but Weaker on Growth

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PYPL has been the subject of several analyst reports. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on PayPal from $50.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Susquehanna raised their price target on PayPal from $63.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their price target on PayPal from $43.50 to $52.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped 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. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group upgraded shares of PayPal from a "hold" rating to an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $55.72.

Insider Buying and Selling at PayPal

In other news, insider Frank Keller sold 4,612 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.54, for a total value of $196,194.48. Following the transaction, the insider owned 41,567 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,768,260.18. This trade represents a 9.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Suzan Kereere sold 3,379 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider owned 30,983 shares in the company, 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 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.63% of the company's stock.

PayPal Price Performance

Shares of PayPal stock opened at $59.07 on Friday. The business's fifty day moving average price is $48.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $47.15. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $38.46 and a twelve month high of $79.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.17, a PEG ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.30.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The credit services provider reported $1.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $8.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.47 billion. PayPal had a return on equity of 24.39% and a net margin of 14.36%.The firm's revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.40 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts anticipate that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.37 earnings per share for the current year.

PayPal Announces Dividend

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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.9%. PayPal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.59%.

PayPal 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding PYPL? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL - Free Report).

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.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source