PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Trading 1.9% Higher – Still a Buy?

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL)’s share price shot up 1.9% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $47.92 and last traded at $47.64. 18,293,170 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 31% from the average session volume of 26,623,131 shares. The stock had previously closed at $46.75.

Key PayPal News

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Partnership expands PYUSD use case — PayPal announced a collaboration with TCS Blockchain to enable digital?asset settlement of freight invoices, giving PYUSD a concrete B2B payments path that could drive incremental transaction volume and fees. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Stablecoin narrative supports adoption — industry coverage notes PYUSD’s growing relevance as the stablecoin market concentrates around a few large players, which helps PayPal’s strategic case for wallet and settlement growth. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Recent analyst attention and modest targets create tactical buying — Bank of America initiated coverage with a neutral rating and a $48 target (near current levels), which can attract traders looking for a rebound off the post?earnings low.
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation/coverage debate keeps shares volatile — Several pieces are re?examining PayPal’s valuation after a sharp reset in shareholder returns; this fuels trading volume and back?and?forth analyst calls rather than a clear directional thesis. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Legal overhang — Multiple law firms have filed or solicited plaintiffs for securities class actions tied to PayPal’s guidance and the Q4 results (lead?plaintiff deadline Apr 20, 2026), creating potential settlement risk and management distraction. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling — SEC filings show meaningful sales by senior executives (EVP Frank Keller and others, plus CAO Chris Natali), which investors often view as a negative signal for near?term insider confidence. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Earnings miss remains a drag — PayPal’s Q4 revenue and EPS shortfall pushed shares to a 12?month low and is still cited by skeptics as evidence execution must improve before multiple expansion. Read More.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. KGI Securities reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $55.00 price objective on shares of PayPal in a report on Monday. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of PayPal in a research report on Thursday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $48.00 price objective for the company. BNP Paribas Exane dropped their price objective on shares of PayPal from $71.00 to $69.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 2nd. Mizuho set a $60.00 target price on shares of PayPal in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty-one have assigned a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PayPal currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $59.03.

PayPal Stock Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $50.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $60.89. The firm has a market cap of $43.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 3rd. The credit services provider reported $1.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $8.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.82 billion. PayPal had a net margin of 15.77% and a return on equity of 25.42%. PayPal’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.19 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PayPal Announces Dividend

The business 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 $0.14 dividend. 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other PayPal news, insider Suzan Kereere sold 37,613 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.49, for a total transaction of $1,560,563.37. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 30,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,285,484.67. This trade represents a 54.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CAO Chris Natali sold 2,208 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 1,140 shares in the company, valued at $50,992.20. This trade represents a 65.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 87,608 shares of company stock worth $3,831,535. 0.08% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PayPal

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PYPL. Bard Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in PayPal during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its position in PayPal by 15,233.3% in the 4th quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 460 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 457 shares in the last quarter. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PayPal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Cloud Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PayPal during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new position in shares of PayPal during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.32% of the company’s stock.

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.