Equity Investment Corp Invests $142.41 Million in PayPal Holdings, Inc. $PYPL

Equity Investment Corp acquired a new position in PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 3,297,997 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $142,408,000. PayPal makes up about 2.7% of Equity Investment Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Equity Investment Corp owned about 0.39% of PayPal as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in PayPal in the second quarter worth $3,236,989,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in PayPal during the 4th quarter worth approximately $949,758,000. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in PayPal by 67.9% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 25,614,720 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,158,554,000 after purchasing an additional 10,356,256 shares during the period. Amundi boosted its stake in shares of PayPal by 227.6% in the first quarter. Amundi now owns 13,804,208 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $624,364,000 after buying an additional 9,590,488 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in PayPal in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $251,215,000. 68.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Chris Natali sold 1,337 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 owned 2,216 shares in the company, valued at $128,749.60. This represents a 37.63% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Frank Keller sold 732 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.10, for a total transaction of $42,529.20. Following the sale, the insider owned 41,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,415,042.70. This trade represents a 1.73% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last three months, insiders sold 10,612 shares of company stock valued at $484,534. Insiders own 0.63% of the company’s stock.

PayPal Trading Down 0.1%

NASDAQ PYPL opened at $60.43 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $51.70 billion, a PE ratio of 11.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.29. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $50.89 and a two-hundred day moving average of $47.29. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $38.46 and a 52 week high of $79.21.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The credit services provider reported $1.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.47 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.40 earnings per share. PayPal’s quarterly revenue was up 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.37 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PayPal Announces Dividend

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

PayPal News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Takeover interest supports valuation. PayPal is reportedly in renewed sale discussions with a consortium involving Stripe and Advent International. The group previously submitted a bid of approximately $60.50 per share, while one analysis suggested a potential sale value of $70–$80 per share. PayPal reportedly in sale talks with consortium including Stripe and Advent PayPal Could Be Sold For $70-$80/Share
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see potential beyond PayPal’s checkout business. Piper Sandler raised its price target by more than 40% to $59, citing value in PayPal’s broader platform, although it retained a Neutral rating. Piper Sandler sees value beyond checkout
• Positive Sentiment: Operating trends remain mixed but constructive. Recent coverage points to total payment volume and Venmo growth, while PayPal’s latest reported quarter exceeded consensus estimates for earnings and revenue. Should You Buy, Sell or Hold PayPal Stock
• Neutral Sentiment: BNPL weakness has not materially spread to PayPal. Klarna’s outlook reduction triggered a sharp selloff in its shares, but PayPal and Affirm were described as largely shrugging off the news, suggesting limited immediate read-through for PayPal. Klarna craters on guidance cut while Affirm and PayPal shrug it off
• Negative Sentiment: Core checkout growth and competition remain concerns. Analysts cautioned that weak checkout expansion and pressure from rivals could undermine the turnaround, tempering the bullish impact of takeover rumors. TikTok’s exploration of peer-to-peer payments also highlights growing competition for digital-payment activity. TikTok explores peer-to-peer payments via direct messages

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PYPL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen raised their target price on PayPal from $48.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of PayPal from $48.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on PayPal from $46.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $45.00 price target on shares of PayPal in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. Finally, Clear Str raised PayPal to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty-four have assigned a Hold rating and four have issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $56.19.

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.