PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) EVP Frank Keller Sells 3,478 Shares

PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) EVP Frank Keller sold 3,478 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.20, for a total transaction of $139,815.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 51,567 shares in the company, valued at $2,072,993.40. This trade represents a 6.32% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

PayPal Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PYPL opened at $41.15 on Tuesday. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $38.88 and a 52 week high of $79.50. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $56.75 and a 200 day moving average of $64.01. The company has a market capitalization of $37.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49.

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

PayPal Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, March 25th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 4th will be paid a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 4th. PayPal’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 10.35%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PayPal

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in PayPal by 15.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,989 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $596,000 after buying an additional 924 shares in the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PayPal in the fourth quarter worth approximately $248,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake 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 last quarter. Callan Family Office LLC increased its position in shares of PayPal by 184.6% during the second quarter. Callan Family Office LLC now owns 28,481 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,117,000 after purchasing an additional 18,475 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in PayPal in the 2nd quarter valued at $216,000. 68.32% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key PayPal News

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Several bullish pieces argue the stock is oversold and present buying opportunities, which can attract value‑oriented investors and short‑covering demand. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Another Seeking Alpha piece lays out why the recent sell‑off may be overextended and highlights what could drive a rebound, supporting short‑term buying interest. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks flags PYPL as a trending/most‑watched stock, which can boost trading volume but doesn’t change fundamentals. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Argus trimmed its price target to $65 — a reduction but still above current levels; this is mixed news (smaller long‑term signal than the larger cuts below). Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Sanford C. Bernstein slashed its price target to $45 and moved to Market Perform, reducing analyst support and adding downward pressure. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Cantor Fitzgerald cut its target to $42 and kept a Neutral rating, further trimming expectations and limiting near‑term upside. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: PayPal is facing an active securities investigation announced by Levi & Korsinsky, which raises legal/financial risk and can prolong volatility. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: An EVP, Frank Keller, sold ~3,478 shares (~6.3% reduction in his position) — insider selling can be read negatively even if not large relative to total float. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Critical commentary asks how PayPal can turn its business around, reflecting investor concern about execution and growth — a sentiment headwind. Read More.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PYPL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of PayPal in a research report on Wednesday, January 7th. Evercore dropped their price target on PayPal from $65.00 to $40.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of PayPal from $50.00 to $34.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Daiwa Securities Group lowered PayPal from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $77.00 to $61.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Citizens Jmp reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, PayPal presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.46.

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.