S&CO Inc. Takes Position in PayPal Holdings, Inc. $PYPL

S&CO Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 436,017 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $18,827,000. PayPal makes up approximately 1.1% of S&CO Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 25th biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of PYPL. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in PayPal by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,989 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $596,000 after acquiring an additional 924 shares during the period. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of PayPal in the fourth quarter worth $248,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PayPal by 41.5% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,470 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $332,000 after acquiring an additional 1,310 shares during the period. United Bank grew its position in shares of PayPal by 40.1% in the second quarter. United Bank now owns 17,388 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,292,000 after purchasing an additional 4,974 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. grew its position in shares of PayPal by 17.9% in the second quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 18,909 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,405,000 after purchasing an additional 2,865 shares in the last quarter. 68.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PayPal News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Renewed takeover discussions provided the main catalyst. PayPal is reportedly in early negotiations to sell itself to a group involving Stripe and private-equity firm Advent International. The parties are said to be considering a higher valuation than an earlier offer, although discussions remain preliminary and no deal is assured. PayPal Stock Rises on Report of Stripe, Advent Buyout Talks
• Positive Sentiment: A $1.5 billion cost-savings plan could support earnings. PayPal intends to use artificial intelligence, operational changes and a simpler organizational structure to reduce expenses, potentially improving profitability while freeing resources for future growth. PayPal Cost Savings: Will $1.5B Plan Reshape Profitability?
• Positive Sentiment: Venmo remains a potential growth and monetization engine. Venmo is generating mid-teens total payment volume growth, but the investment case increasingly depends on PayPal converting expanding user activity and product adoption into revenue. PayPal’s Venmo: Can Monetization Sustain Its Mid-Teens Growth?
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent profit improvement may already be reflected in company disclosures. Commentary highlighted a shift toward businesses that are supporting PayPal’s recovery, but suggested the underlying drivers were previously identified in management reports rather than representing a wholly new development. PayPal Stock Surged On a Profit Shift Management Had Already Spelled Out
• Negative Sentiment: Longer-term investor concerns remain. Despite recurring payment-volume growth, PayPal’s shares remain far below their record level, reflecting doubts about revenue conversion, competitive pressure and the company’s ability to sustain growth. PayPal Grows Its Volume Every Year. Here’s Why the Stock Doesn’t Always Follow

Analyst Ratings Changes

PYPL has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. TD Cowen increased their price objective on PayPal from $48.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $50.00 target price on PayPal in a report on Tuesday, July 28th. HSBC started coverage on PayPal in a report on Friday, July 24th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. Truist Financial set a $59.00 price target on PayPal in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of PayPal from $55.00 to $53.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $55.72.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Suzan Kereere sold 3,379 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.79, for a total value of $144,587.41. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 30,983 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,325,762.57. This represents a 9.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CAO Chris Natali sold 1,337 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.10, for a total transaction of $77,679.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 2,216 shares in the company, valued at $128,749.60. This represents a 37.63% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 10,612 shares of company stock worth $484,534. 0.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

PayPal Trading Up 1.8%

Shares of PYPL stock opened at $61.67 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.46 and a 52-week high of $79.21. The company has a market capitalization of $52.76 billion, a PE ratio of 11.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.30. The business’s fifty day moving average is $50.13 and its 200 day moving average is $47.28.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The credit services provider reported $1.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.10. PayPal had a return on equity of 24.39% and a net margin of 14.36%.The company had revenue of $8.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.47 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.40 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PayPal Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be issued a $0.14 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.9%. PayPal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 10.59%.

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.