Wells Fargo & Company Upgrades PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) to Hold

Key Points

• Wells Fargo & Company has upgraded PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) to a "hold" rating, reflecting a more cautious outlook for the stock.
• PayPal's stock performance indicates a range, with a 52-week low of $55.85 and a high of $93.66, currently trading around $68.07.
• Analysts maintain a consensus target price of $82.57 for PayPal, with a mix of ratings from various research firms highlighting an overall cautious sentiment.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) was upgraded by research analysts at Wells Fargo & Company to a "hold" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on PYPL. Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price target on shares of PayPal from $66.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of PayPal in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Macquarie restated an "outperform" rating and set a $95.00 target price on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed a "positive" rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated a "market perform" rating on shares of PayPal in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. Fifteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $82.57.

PayPal Stock Performance

PayPal stock opened at $68.07 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.44. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $68.92 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.33 and a quick ratio of 1.33. PayPal has a 52-week low of $55.85 and a 52-week high of $93.66.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The credit services provider reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.30 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $8.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.08 billion. PayPal had a return on equity of 25.35% and a net margin of 14.49%.During the same period last year, the firm 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. As a group, analysts anticipate that PayPal will post 5.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other PayPal news, EVP Diego Scotti sold 3,838 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.12, for a total transaction of $265,282.56. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 16,989 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,174,279.68. This trade represents a 18.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Chris Natali sold 7,102 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.35, for a total value of $492,523.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 15,102 shares of company stock worth $1,046,607. Corporate insiders own 0.08% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PayPal

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PYPL. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd increased its stake in PayPal by 41.2% during the first quarter. Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd now owns 473 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 138 shares during the period. GSB Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PayPal by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. GSB Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,160 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $606,000 after buying an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PayPal by 1.5% in the 1st quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 9,387 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $613,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Wedmont Private Capital raised its position in PayPal by 1.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 9,157 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $614,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pitti Group Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in PayPal by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Pitti Group Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,233 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $761,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.32% of the company's stock.

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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