PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Stock Gets Downgrade from Freedom Broker

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) was downgraded by equities researchers at Freedom Broker from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday, Zacks reports.

Several other analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. HSBC started coverage on shares of PayPal in a research note on Friday, July 24th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on PayPal from $46.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. UBS Group lowered their target price on PayPal from $61.00 to $60.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Argus set a $70.00 price target on PayPal in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of PayPal in a research report on Friday, September 25th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty-two have given a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $55.94.

PayPal Trading Up 3.4%

Shares of PYPL stock opened at $60.20 on Tuesday. PayPal has a fifty-two week low of $38.46 and a fifty-two week high of $68.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 1.26 and a current ratio of 1.26. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $55.20 and its two-hundred day moving average is $50.07. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.49, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 1.33.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The credit services provider reported $1.45 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $8.58 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.71 billion. PayPal had a net margin of 13.78% and a return on equity of 24.39%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.34 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that PayPal will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at PayPal

In other news, insider Frank Keller sold 4,612 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.43, for a total value of $255,643.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 41,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,304,058.81. The trade was a 9.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Chris Natali sold 552 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.80, for a total value of $30,249.60. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 2,400 shares in the company, valued at $131,520. This represents a 18.70% decrease in their position. 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 sold a total of 13,437 shares of company stock worth $768,417 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.63% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of PayPal

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in PayPal during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $97,372,000. S&CO Inc. purchased a new position in PayPal in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $18,827,000. Swiss National Bank boosted its position in PayPal by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 2,608,600 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $117,987,000 after buying an additional 121,400 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of PayPal by 2.0% in the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,593,196 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $284,694,000 after acquiring an additional 128,426 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new position in shares of PayPal in the second quarter worth $975,563,000. 68.32% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about PayPal

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PayPal shares moved higher alongside other fintech stocks as investors reacted to Block’s earnings beat and raised outlook. The article frames the move as sector-wide momentum rather than a PayPal-specific catalyst. Block Surges 16% on Earnings Beat and Raised Outlook; SoFi and PayPal Advance 4%
• Positive Sentiment: PayPal and Venmo expanded their payout partnership with LianLian Global, broadening access for creators, marketplaces and contractors across 96 markets. The added reach could support cross-border use of PayPal’s wallets. How Investors Are Reacting To PayPal (PYPL) LianLian Payout Partnership
• Neutral Sentiment: Payments software provider Justt introduced PayPal Alerts, which gives merchants pre-chargeback warnings. The feature may help merchants manage disputes, but it is a third-party product announcement, not a PayPal launch. Justt Launches ‘Flows,’ Its New Chargeback Automation Engine
• Negative Sentiment: Freedom Broker downgraded PayPal to Hold from Buy and cut its price target to $63 from $72, citing a lack of reacceleration in branded checkout. This underscores concerns that PayPal’s core checkout business is struggling to regain momentum. Freedom Broker cuts PayPal to Hold as branded checkout stalls

PayPal Company Profile

PayPal Holdings, Inc operates a global digital payments platform that enables consumers and businesses to send, receive, and manage money online and through mobile devices. Its services support online checkout, peer-to-peer payments, money transfers, payment processing, invoicing, and other commerce-related transactions.

The company’s portfolio includes the PayPal and Venmo brands, Braintree’s payment processing technology, and Xoom’s international money transfer service. PayPal also offers merchant tools, digital wallets, payment solutions, and consumer financing products through its platform and related services.

PayPal traces its origins to 1998 and became an independent publicly traded company after separating from eBay in 2015.