PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Trading Up 2.2% After Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• PayPal shares rose 2.2% after Barclays upgraded the stock from underweight to equal weight and raised its price target to $55 from $42. The stock traded as high as $57.67 on heavier-than-normal volume.
• Other analysts were mixed on PYPL, with Canaccord lifting its target to $55 while Piper Sandler and Bank of America trimmed theirs. Overall, the consensus rating remains Hold, with an average target price of $54.61.
• PayPal’s recent earnings beat expectations, reporting $1.34 EPS on $8.35 billion in revenue, while the company also paid a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share. Insider selling and strong institutional ownership were also noted, though they did not appear to weigh on the stock’s move.

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) shares were up 2.2% during trading on Thursday after Barclays upgraded the stock from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating. Barclays now has a $55.00 price target on the stock, up from their previous price target of $42.00. PayPal traded as high as $57.67 and last traded at $56.73. 33,195,157 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 67% from the average session volume of 19,850,676 shares. The stock had previously closed at $55.52.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on PYPL. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price target on PayPal from $42.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on PayPal from $46.00 to $42.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Bank of America decreased their target price on PayPal from $55.00 to $53.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of PayPal from $41.00 to $48.00 and gave the company a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty-three have assigned a Hold rating and five have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $54.61.

Insider Activity at PayPal

In other PayPal news, insider Frank Keller sold 4,612 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.54, for a total value of $196,194.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 41,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,768,260.18. This trade represents a 9.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through 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 dated Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.79, for a total value of $144,587.41. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 30,983 shares in the company, valued at $1,325,762.57. The trade was a 9.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. 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 20,612 shares of company stock valued at $966,623 in the last 90 days. 0.63% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Trending Headlines about PayPal

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: A reported $53 billion buyout offer from Stripe and Advent sparked takeover speculation and drove a sharp re-rating of PayPal shares.
• Positive Sentiment: Some analysts and investors argue the initial $60.50-per-share bid undervalues PayPal, raising the possibility of a higher offer.
• Neutral Sentiment: Barclays and Canaccord improved their views on PYPL, but their targets remain close to or below the current share price, signaling cautious optimism rather than full conviction.
• Negative Sentiment: The deal still faces uncertainty from valuation disagreements and potential regulatory scrutiny, so the takeover is not yet a done deal.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PayPal

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Maia Wealth LLC grew its position in PayPal by 2.5% during 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 last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC lifted its position in PayPal by 6.2% in the third quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 3,214 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $216,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. Harrell Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of PayPal by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Harrell Investment Partners LLC now owns 9,374 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $547,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares during the period. Formidable Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of PayPal by 0.8% during the first quarter. Formidable Asset Management LLC now owns 25,937 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,173,000 after purchasing an additional 205 shares during the period. Finally, KPP Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of PayPal by 3.3% in 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. 68.32% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PayPal Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $44.16 and its 200-day moving average price is $47.19. The stock has a market cap of $50.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.64, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.33.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 5th. The credit services provider reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.27 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $8.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.05 billion. PayPal had a net margin of 15.00% and a return on equity of 25.02%. The firm's revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.33 EPS. Analysts forecast that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.32 earnings per share for the current year.

PayPal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 25th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 4th were issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 4th. PayPal's dividend payout ratio is currently 10.51%.

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.

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