Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC Sells 18,027 Shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. $PYPL

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC decreased its position in shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) by 9.6% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 169,711 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 18,027 shares during the period. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in PayPal were worth $11,381,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of PayPal by 15.2% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,989 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $596,000 after purchasing an additional 924 shares during the last quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in PayPal during the 4th quarter worth about $248,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its position in PayPal by 41.5% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,470 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $332,000 after acquiring an additional 1,310 shares in the last quarter. United Bank raised its stake 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 worth $1,292,000 after acquiring an additional 4,974 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Transcend Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of PayPal by 19.8% in the second quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,218 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $313,000 after acquiring an additional 696 shares during the last quarter. 68.32% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PayPal Stock Down 3.8%

Shares of PayPal stock opened at $45.53 on Friday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.85 and a 200 day simple moving average of $61.57. The stock has a market cap of $41.92 billion, a PE ratio of 8.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 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 Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $38.46 and a 12 month high of $79.50.

PayPal (NASDAQ:PYPL) last issued its earnings results 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 company had revenue of $8.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.82 billion. PayPal had a return on equity of 25.42% and a net margin of 15.77%.PayPal’s quarterly revenue was up 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.19 EPS. Research analysts predict that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.03 EPS for the current year.

PayPal Dividend Announcement

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 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 4th. PayPal’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.35%.

Key PayPal News

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Preliminary takeover chatter (Stripe reportedly considering buying some or all of PayPal) triggered a surge, a trading halt and heavy volume — that event put a near-term bid under the stock and attracted options/call buying. Stripe weighs acquisition of PayPal (Proactive)
• Positive Sentiment: Follow-through market action: outsized call-option flow and elevated trading volume signaled institutional/speculative buyers betting on either a deal or continued re-rating, increasing short-term upside optionality. M&A News: PayPal Stock Soars (TipRanks)
• Neutral Sentiment: Strategic/valuation analysis: several deep-dive pieces argue PayPal is materially undervalued on cash flow and asset value, outlining scenarios (sale, breakup, turnaround) that could justify higher prices — useful context but not an immediate catalyst without deal confirmation. PayPal’s Brutal Reset Hides A Cash Machine (Seeking Alpha)
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry/operational coverage (FT): in‑depth pieces examine structural problems and the need for reinvention — informs long-term thesis but does not change near‑term outcome absent corporate action. What went wrong at PayPal (Financial Times)
• Negative Sentiment: Follow-up reporting cooled the buyout narrative: several outlets and PayPal-adjacent reporting said the company is not in active sale talks, which removed the immediate M&A bid and helped push shares lower. PayPal might not be looking to sell itself (TechCrunch)
• Negative Sentiment: Legal and disclosure pressure: multiple law firms and investor‑rights groups have filed/class‑action notices and launched investigations into PayPal’s disclosures and key metrics — these increase litigation risk, potential settlement costs, and investor uncertainty. Bragar Eagel & Squire reminder of class actions (GlobeNewswire)
• Negative Sentiment: Earnings/guidance and analyst pressure: recent Q4 results missed some estimates and management gave cautious 2026 guidance; analysts have been cautious (including a recent sell/negative view), which keeps downward pressure until execution improves. PYPL Falls Despite Earnings Growth (Zacks)
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory/market structure risks: a disclosure probe and rising short interest magnify volatility and downside risk if no deal materializes or guidance disappoints. Investigation into metrics/disclosures (PR Newswire)

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Chris Natali sold 1,213 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.49, for a total value 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. This represents a 75.02% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Frank Keller sold 3,478 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.20, for a total value of $139,815.60. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 51,567 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,072,993.40. This represents a 6.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 42,304 shares of company stock worth $1,749,493. Company insiders own 0.08% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PYPL has been the subject of a number of research reports. Evercore lowered their price target on shares of PayPal from $65.00 to $40.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Rothschild & Co Redburn lowered their target price on PayPal from $50.00 to $32.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 11th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on PayPal from $67.00 to $48.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $44.00 price target on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Truist Financial lowered their price objective on PayPal from $58.00 to $39.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 10th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Hold rating and six have given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PayPal has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $61.03.

PayPal 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.