PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) Trading Down 1.3% – Here’s What Happened

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) traded down 1.3% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $44.64 and last traded at $45.63. 17,291,588 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 37% from the average session volume of 27,314,887 shares. The stock had previously closed at $46.21.

Key Stories Impacting PayPal

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Speculation about potential buyers (reported takeover interest) is keeping upside hopes alive and can support the stock if a bid materializes. PayPal Buyout Rumors
• Positive Sentiment: KGI Securities reaffirmed a “neutral” rating but set a $55 price target (~20%+ upside from current levels), which could attract value‑oriented buyers if confidence stabilizes. Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: Consensus broker guidance remains tepid (“Hold”/average recommendation), reflecting mixed expectations rather than outright enthusiasm. PayPal Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysis pieces note PayPal has underperformed broader benchmarks over the past year, reinforcing cautious positioning by some investors. Is PayPal Holdings Stock Underperforming the Dow?
• Negative Sentiment: Multiple law firms have filed or announced investigations and class actions covering purchases from Feb 25, 2025–Feb 2, 2026; widespread plaintiff solicitations and a looming April 20, 2026 lead‑plaintiff deadline increase legal overhang and potential liability. PayPal Holdings, Inc. Stockholders Have Rights – Robbins LLP
• Negative Sentiment: Corporate uncertainty: reporting indicates PayPal withdrew its 2027 targets and announced a CEO change — actions that often raise short‑term investor caution and amplify downside risk. PayPal Faces Lawsuits And CEO Change As Valuation Gap Widens
• Negative Sentiment: Technicals and liquidity: shares trade below the 50‑ and 200‑day moving averages with volume below average, which can exacerbate down moves as buyers stay on the sidelines.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on PYPL. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their price target on PayPal from $60.00 to $42.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 9th. Mizuho set a $60.00 price objective on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. BTIG Research reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of PayPal in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Dbs Bank upgraded shares of PayPal to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on PayPal from $50.00 to $34.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Eight investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, PayPal has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $59.55.

PayPal Stock Down 1.3%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.43, a PEG ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.43. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $51.58 and its 200-day moving average price is $61.31.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The credit services provider reported $1.23 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.29 by ($0.06). PayPal had a return on equity of 25.42% and a net margin of 15.77%.The firm had revenue of $8.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.82 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.19 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.03 earnings per share for the current year.

PayPal Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Investors of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 4th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. PayPal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 10.35%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Suzan Kereere sold 37,613 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.49, for a total value of $1,560,563.37. Following the transaction, the insider owned 30,983 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,285,484.67. The trade was a 54.83% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CAO Chris Natali sold 1,213 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.49, for a total transaction of $49,114.37. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 404 shares in the company, valued at $16,357.96. The trade was a 75.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 42,304 shares of company stock valued at $1,749,493 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wedmont Private Capital lifted its position in shares of PayPal by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wedmont Private Capital now owns 9,157 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $614,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA grew its holdings in shares of PayPal by 8.7% in the 2nd quarter. Dakota Community Bank & Trust NA now owns 1,840 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $137,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Maia Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of PayPal by 2.5% during the third quarter. Maia Wealth LLC now owns 6,404 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $424,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. Transatlantique Private Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PayPal by 2.9% during the third quarter. Transatlantique Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,698 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $382,000 after purchasing an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WCG Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of PayPal by 1.1% in the 2nd quarter. WCG Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 14,285 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,062,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 68.32% of the company’s stock.

About PayPal

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.