Macquarie Reiterates Outperform Rating for PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL)

Key Points

• Macquarie reiterated an "Outperform" rating with a $100 price target, implying roughly a 134.6% upside from the stock's prior close, even as the Street's average rating remains "Hold" with a $73.10 consensus price target.
• PayPal missed Q4 expectations (EPS $1.23 vs. $1.29; revenue $8.68B vs. ~$8.8B), triggering an ~18.5% stock plunge to $42.63 on heavy volume and prompting analysts to cut forecasts after management signaled weaker 2026 profitability.
• Management and governance changes announced: Enrique Lores (former HP CEO) will become PayPal's CEO on March 1, with CFO/COO Jamie Miller as interim CEO and a new independent board chair appointed to address execution concerns.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "outperform" rating reiterated by analysts at Macquarie in a research report issued on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $100.00 price target on the credit services provider's stock. Macquarie's target price would suggest a potential upside of 134.60% from the company's previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Robert W. Baird reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $66.00 price objective (down from $83.00) on shares of PayPal in a research report on Friday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $70.00 price objective (down from $85.00) on shares of PayPal in a research note on Thursday, December 4th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on PayPal from $78.00 to $60.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on shares of PayPal from $72.00 to $65.00 and set a "sell" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of PayPal to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twenty-four have given a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $73.10.

PayPal Stock Down 18.5%

PYPL traded down $9.71 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $42.63. The company had a trading volume of 77,060,320 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,552,061. The business's fifty day moving average price is $58.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $65.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.34. PayPal has a 12 month low of $42.10 and a 12 month high of $82.69. The company has a market cap of $39.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.50, a PEG ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.43.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) last released 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 firm had revenue of $8.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.82 billion. PayPal had a net margin of 14.96% and a return on equity of 25.64%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.19 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that PayPal will post 5.03 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at PayPal

In related news, EVP Aaron Webster sold 9,282 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $66.29, for a total value of $615,303.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 35,699 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,366,486.71. The trade was a 20.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Suzan Kereere sold 4,162 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.84, for a total transaction of $249,054.08. Following the transaction, the insider owned 30,983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,854,022.72. This trade represents a 11.84% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.08% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PayPal

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in PayPal by 15.2% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,989 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $596,000 after purchasing an additional 924 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in PayPal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $248,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of PayPal by 41.5% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,470 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $332,000 after purchasing an additional 1,310 shares during the period. Hilltop National Bank acquired a new stake in PayPal in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Finally, Ascent Group LLC raised its position in PayPal by 32.6% during the second quarter. Ascent Group LLC now owns 8,643 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $642,000 after acquiring an additional 2,125 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.32% of the company's stock.

More PayPal News

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Experienced CEO hire could help execution — PayPal named Enrique Lores (former HP CEO and PayPal board chair) as CEO effective March 1; the board framed the move as an effort to accelerate innovation and execution. PayPal hires HP's Enrique Lores as its new CEO
• Positive Sentiment: Underlying volume and revenue growth remain positive on a year-over-year basis — Q4 revenue rose ~4% and total payment volume showed mid‑single to high‑single growth, indicating continued demand for payments services even as momentum slows. PayPal in Charts: Total Payment Volume rose 8.5% Y/Y in Q4
• Neutral Sentiment: Interim management and governance steps — CFO/COO Jamie Miller will serve as interim CEO until Lores starts; David Dorman appointed independent board chair, signaling an active board response to execution issues. PayPal replaces CEO Chriss with HP's Lores
• Negative Sentiment: Earnings and revenue misses — PayPal reported adjusted EPS of $1.23 vs. consensus ~ $1.29 and revenue ~$8.68B vs. expectations near $8.8B, which triggered immediate downside pressure. PayPal Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Results
• Negative Sentiment: Weaker profit outlook for 2026 spooked investors — management signaled lower earnings in 2026/1Q26, prompting analysts to cut forecasts and sparking the selloff. PayPal Names HP Exec as New CEO; Expects Earnings Decline in 2026
• Negative Sentiment: Operational pressures: checkout growth slowing and fewer transactions per active account — competitive pressures in checkout and BNPL moderation are weighing on near‑term growth expectations. PayPal (PYPL) Stock: Q4 Earnings Face Pressure From Slowing Checkout Growth
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction and headline risk — the stock plunged on the combined news, producing heavy volume and spillover weakness in other payments stocks; media coverage and high-profile insider sale headlines add to short‑term volatility. PayPal Stock Plummets on Earnings Miss, CEO Change

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.

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.