S&CO Inc. Acquires 103,397 Shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. $PYPL

Key Points

• S&CO Inc. boosted its PayPal stake by 45.3% in Q3, buying 103,397 shares to hold 331,501 shares worth $22.23 million, making PYPL its 20th largest position (about 1.4% of holdings).
• PayPal recently missed estimates with $1.23 EPS vs. $1.29 expected and $8.68B revenue vs. $8.82B expected, prompting multiple price-target cuts and a consensus analyst rating of "Hold" with a $62.46 average target.
• PayPal announced a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share (annualized $0.56, ~1.4% yield), with an ex-dividend date of March 4 and payment on March 25.

S&CO Inc. lifted its stake in shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL - Free Report) by 45.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 331,501 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 103,397 shares during the quarter. PayPal accounts for about 1.4% of S&CO Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 20th largest position. S&CO Inc.'s holdings in PayPal were worth $22,230,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of PYPL. Wedmont Private Capital boosted its stake in PayPal by 1.6% during the third quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 9,157 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $614,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the period. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA boosted its position in shares of PayPal by 8.7% during the 2nd quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 1,840 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $137,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. WCG Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of PayPal by 1.1% during the second quarter. WCG Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 14,285 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $1,062,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its holdings in shares of PayPal by 16.5% during the third quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 1,185 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $79,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in PayPal by 4.6% in the second quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 3,897 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $290,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 68.32% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PYPL has been the subject of several research reports. Susquehanna cut their target price on PayPal from $90.00 to $63.00 and set a "positive" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Citizens Jmp reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of PayPal in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price target on PayPal from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of PayPal in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, KGI Securities cut their target price on shares of PayPal from $85.00 to $80.00 in a report on Monday, November 10th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $62.46.

PayPal Stock Performance

Shares of PYPL opened at $41.15 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $56.75 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $64.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.89 billion, a PE ratio of 7.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.43. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a one year low of $38.88 and a one year high of $79.50.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The credit services provider reported $1.23 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $8.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.82 billion. PayPal had a net margin of 15.77% and a return on equity of 25.42%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.19 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PayPal Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. PayPal's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Frank Keller sold 3,478 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.20, for a total value of $139,815.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 51,567 shares in the company, valued at $2,072,993.40. The trade was a 6.32% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Suzan Kereere sold 4,162 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.84, for a total transaction of $249,054.08. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 30,983 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,854,022.72. This trade represents a 11.84% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting PayPal

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Several recent Seeking Alpha pieces argue the sell‑off is overextended and present PayPal as a value/contrarian buy, which can attract bargain hunters and short‑covering. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Another Seeking Alpha article similarly frames the recent sell‑off as “overextended,” reinforcing short‑term buying interest from value investors. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks highlights PYPL as a trending/most‑watched stock, likely increasing trading volume but not changing fundamentals. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Argus trimmed its long‑term target to $65 — a downgrade but still above current levels, so mixed for sentiment. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Sanford C. Bernstein cut its price target to $45 and moved the stock to Market Perform, reducing analyst support and putting downward pressure on sentiment. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald cut its target to $42 and kept a Neutral rating, trimming upside expectations near term. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Levi & Korsinsky announced an ongoing securities investigation into PayPal, increasing legal and execution risk and likely adding to volatility until resolved. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: EVP Frank Keller sold 3,478 shares at ~$40.20 (SEC filing), a modest insider sale that can be read negatively by some investors despite being a small percentage of his total holding. SEC Filing
• Negative Sentiment: Recent quarterly results missed revenue and EPS estimates, which remains a focal point for analysts and investors questioning near‑term growth/execution. Company Earnings Summary

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.

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