PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Shares Up 2.3% on Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• PayPal shares rose 2.3% following an upgrade to a "hold" rating by Wells Fargo, with the stock last trading at $69.66 after reaching a high of $70.06.
• Fifteen analysts have rated PayPal with a Buy rating, while fourteen rated it Hold, and three rated it Sell, resulting in a consensus rating of "Hold" and a price target of $82.57.
• Insider transactions showed significant selling, with executive Suzan Kereere selling over 4,000 shares, decreasing her ownership by 7.91% and raising concerns among investors.

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) shares shot up 2.3% on Thursday after Wells Fargo & Company upgraded the stock to a hold rating. The stock traded as high as $70.06 and last traded at $69.66. 8,111,621 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 30% from the average session volume of 11,559,258 shares. The stock had previously closed at $68.07.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on PYPL. Sanford C. Bernstein decreased their target price on shares of PayPal from $85.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Tuesday. KeyCorp reissued a "hold" rating on shares of PayPal in a research report on Wednesday. Macquarie reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $95.00 target price on shares of PayPal in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Seaport Res Ptn raised shares of PayPal from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated a "positive" rating on shares of PayPal in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, PayPal presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $82.57.

Insider Buying and Selling at PayPal

In other PayPal news, insider Suzan Kereere sold 4,162 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.39, for a total transaction of $288,801.18. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 48,483 shares in the company, valued at $3,364,235.37. This trade represents a 7.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Diego Scotti sold 3,838 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.12, for a total transaction of $265,282.56. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 16,989 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,174,279.68. This represents a 18.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 15,102 shares of company stock worth $1,046,607 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PYPL. Evermay Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of PayPal by 726.0% in the first quarter. Evermay Wealth Management LLC now owns 413 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares in the last quarter. Hilltop National Bank acquired a new position in shares of PayPal in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Tsfg LLC grew its holdings in shares of PayPal by 81.6% in the first quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 445 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc grew its holdings in PayPal by 100.4% during the 2nd quarter. MUFG Securities EMEA plc now owns 385 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 87,524 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd grew its holdings in PayPal by 41.2% during the 1st quarter. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd now owns 473 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.32% of the company's stock.

PayPal Stock Up 2.3%

The company has a current ratio of 1.33, a quick ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The company has a market cap of $66.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.88, a PEG ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.44. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $68.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $69.59.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The credit services provider reported $1.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.10. PayPal had a net margin of 14.49% and a return on equity of 25.35%. The company had revenue of $8.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. PayPal has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 1.180-1.220 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 5.150-5.300 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current year.

About PayPal

PayPal Holdings, Inc operates a technology platform that enables digital payments on behalf of merchants and consumers worldwide. It operates a two-sided network at scale that connects merchants and consumers that enables its customers to connect, transact, and send and receive payments through online and in person, as well as transfer and withdraw funds using various funding sources, such as bank accounts, PayPal or Venmo account balance, PayPal and Venmo branded credit products comprising its installment products, credit and debit cards, and cryptocurrencies, as well as other stored value products, including gift cards and eligible rewards.

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