PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) Short Interest Down 19.2% in February

Key Points

• Short interest fell 19.2% in February to 41.84 million shares (about 4.5% of float), leaving a short-interest ratio of 1.4 days based on average daily volume.
• PayPal faces rising legal and execution risk—multiple securities class‑action filings amid a CEO departure and competitive pressure—while insiders sold 87,608 shares last quarter (including EVP Frank Keller's 29,581 shares), signaling heightened investor caution.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: the consensus rating is "Hold" with an average target of $59.03, though several firms have cut price targets sharply (e.g., Evercore to $40, Goldman to $41 with a "sell").

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 41,844,575 shares, a decrease of 19.2% from the February 12th total of 51,758,573 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 30,662,510 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.4 days. Approximately 4.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Approximately 4.5% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 30,662,510 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.4 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. William Blair restated a "market perform" rating on shares of PayPal in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Robert W. Baird set a $52.00 price target on PayPal in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Evercore lowered their price objective on shares of PayPal from $65.00 to $40.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on shares of PayPal from $64.00 to $41.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty-one have given a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $59.03.

More PayPal News

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PayPal has been included in Mastercard’s new crypto partner program alongside firms like Binance and Ripple, which supports its PYUSD/stablecoin and payments roadmap and could help revenue diversification if partnerships scale. Binance, Ripple, PayPal join Mastercard's 85+ partner crypto initiative
• Positive Sentiment: Valuation looks attractive to some investors and analysts: recent coverage highlights a low P/E and price targets above current levels, which can attract value buyers if execution stabilizes. Why PayPal’s Rally Faded—And What Could Restart It
• Neutral Sentiment: Macro and crypto market moves are creating mixed flows: regulatory alignment between the CFTC and SEC and episodic crypto volatility are shaping sentiment for payments/crypto plays like PayPal. This is a backdrop rather than an immediate company-specific catalyst. Crypto Currents: CFTC affirms crypto oversight alignment with SEC
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple securities class-action filings and numerous law‑firm alerts allege PayPal misled investors about growth and guidance (class period cited Feb 25, 2025–Feb 2, 2026). Firms are soliciting lead‑plaintiff motions with an April 20, 2026 deadline — this litigation wave increases legal risk, potential costs, and investor uncertainty. PayPal Holdings (PYPL) Faces Securities Class Action Amid $9 Billion Market Cap Wipeout, CEO Departure -- Hagens Berman
• Negative Sentiment: Competition and management turnover remain immediate execution risks: coverage notes weak Feb results, cautious guidance, and the CEO departure — all drivers behind the recent selloff and continued skepticism until clear operational improvement is shown. Why PayPal’s Rally Faded—And What Could Restart It
• Negative Sentiment: High-profile commentary suggests competitive pressure from other payment/fintech platforms and actions by industry figures (e.g., Elon Musk) could further compress PayPal’s growth in key consumer/payment corridors. Elon Musk just made things uncomfortable for PayPal and Cash App

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Frank Keller sold 29,581 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.02, for a total transaction of $1,361,317.62. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 51,567 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,373,113.34. This represents a 36.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Chris Natali sold 2,208 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.73, for a total transaction of $98,763.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 1,140 shares of the company's stock, valued at $50,992.20. This represents a 65.95% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 87,608 shares of company stock worth $3,831,535. 0.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PayPal

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PYPL. National Pension Service grew its holdings in PayPal by 1.8% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 2,855,897 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $191,516,000 after purchasing an additional 51,268 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC raised its stake in PayPal by 15.5% during the third quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 164,901 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $11,058,000 after purchasing an additional 22,139 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in PayPal by 7.9% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 4,292,583 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $291,338,000 after purchasing an additional 313,180 shares during the period. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of PayPal in the 3rd quarter valued at $13,210,000. Finally, Ariose Capital Management Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of PayPal by 347.0% in the 3rd quarter. Ariose Capital Management Ltd now owns 193,100 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $12,949,000 after purchasing an additional 149,898 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.32% of the company's stock.

PayPal Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:PYPL opened at $44.90 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. PayPal has a 52-week low of $38.46 and a 52-week high of $79.50. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $48.91 and its 200-day simple moving average is $59.75. The company has a market capitalization of $41.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.30, a P/E/G ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.43.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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). PayPal had a return on equity of 25.42% and a net margin of 15.77%.The company had revenue of $8.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that PayPal will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PayPal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. PayPal's payout ratio is 10.35%.

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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