The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Purchases Shares of 445,145 PayPal Holdings, Inc. $PYPL

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company acquired a new position in shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ:PYPL) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 445,145 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $19,221,000.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Bard Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of PayPal in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors acquired a new position in PayPal in the third quarter valued at $30,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its stake in PayPal by 15,233.3% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 460 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 457 shares in the last quarter. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC purchased a new position in shares of PayPal during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Finally, Advocate Investing Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of PayPal during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 68.32% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their target price on PayPal from $54.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on PayPal from $46.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. UBS Group set a $45.00 price objective on PayPal in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Daiwa Securities Group upgraded shares of PayPal from a “hold” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $45.00 target price on shares of PayPal in a report on Wednesday, July 29th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirty-four have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $56.28.

Key PayPal News

Here are the key news stories impacting PayPal this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PayPal’s expansion into tuition payments could support future growth. Integrations with Nelnet Campus Commerce, Illumia and TouchNet allow students and families to use PayPal and Venmo for tuition-related payments, broadening Venmo’s commercial use. PayPal Holdings Tuition Payment Push
• Positive Sentiment: The company’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations, with earnings per share of $1.38 versus consensus of $1.28 and revenue of approximately $8.68 billion versus estimates of $8.47 billion. Total payment volume reportedly increased 10% year over year, while analysts have raised some price targets and investors continue to view the new CEO transition as a possible turnaround opportunity. Why Is PayPal Up Since Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent momentum had been strong, with PayPal gaining about 10% over the past month and 39% over three months, although its one-year total return remained negative. The stock’s valuation—roughly 12 times earnings—may attract value investors, but reported analyst targets vary widely and several remain below the current trading level. PayPal Opinions on Earnings and Acquisition Speculation
• Negative Sentiment: The reported collapse of the Advent-Stripe discussions eliminates hopes for a deal premium. The consortium had previously been linked to an offer of at least $60.50 per share, with negotiations reportedly focused on a higher bid. Without that proposal, investors may refocus on PayPal’s slower revenue growth and execution risks. Advent Stripe Consortium Drops PayPal Pursuit

PayPal Stock Performance

Shares of PYPL stock opened at $61.47 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.59 billion, a PE ratio of 11.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.30. PayPal Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $38.46 and a 52-week high of $79.21. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $53.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $48.07. 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 (NASDAQ:PYPL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 28th. The credit services provider reported $1.38 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 firm had revenue of $8.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.47 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.40 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that PayPal Holdings, Inc. will post 5.38 EPS for the current year.

PayPal Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 0.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. PayPal’s dividend payout ratio is 10.59%.

Insider Transactions at PayPal

In related news, insider Frank Keller sold 732 shares of PayPal stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.10, for a total value of $42,529.20. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 41,567 shares in the company, valued at $2,415,042.70. This trade represents a 1.73% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, insider Suzan Kereere sold 4,162 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.96, for a total transaction of $253,715.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 30,983 shares in the company, valued at $1,888,723.68. This represents a 11.84% 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. Insiders sold 14,774 shares of company stock worth $738,249 over the last 90 days. 0.63% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.