NEW YORK, Feb 9, 2026, 15:46 (EST) — Regular session
- PayPal shares were up roughly 1.7% at $41.12 in afternoon trading.
- Cantor Fitzgerald trimmed its 12-month price target down to $42, sticking with a neutral rating.
- Investors are weighing if new leadership will be enough to jumpstart growth in PayPal’s core checkout business.
PayPal shares gained 1.7% to finish at $41.12 on Monday, defying choppy trading across the payments sector as investors digested another price target reduction from Wall Street.
PayPal’s latest move comes as the company tries to regain traction following a board-driven leadership shakeup and a gloomy profit forecast that rattled the stock just last week. As a key player in digital payments, PayPal’s fortunes often echo across the fintech space when signs of stability emerge.
Cantor Fitzgerald cut PayPal’s price target to $42 from $60 on Monday, while sticking with a neutral rating, data from Benzinga showed. The price target reflects where brokers think the stock might land within the next year. 1
PayPal announced Feb. 3 that Enrique Lores, a longtime HP executive, will step in as CEO starting March 1, while David W. Dorman takes over as independent chair of the board. “Enrique is widely recognized as a visionary leader,” Dorman said in the company’s statement. 2
According to an SEC filing related to the leadership shift, PayPal disclosed that Lores’s base salary is set at $1.45 million and he’s getting a sign-on equity grant. Interim CEO Jamie Miller, on the other hand, picked up a $3 million cash retention award. 3
Last week, PayPal’s board criticized the “pace of change and execution” under former CEO Alex Chriss, saying it fell short as rivals ramped up the pressure in online checkout. “We will further strengthen the culture of innovation … executing with greater speed and precision,” Lores said. 2
PayPal rolled out its leadership changes as it posted its holiday-quarter results, falling short on both earnings and its profit outlook for 2026, which trailed Wall Street forecasts. The company pointed to weakness among some retail merchants and a notable slowdown in “branded checkout”—that is, the familiar PayPal button shoppers click at online retailers. Competition from Apple and Google intensified, dragging on growth, according to a Reuters report. 4
U.S. stocks picked up steam Monday, with tech shares bouncing back after last week’s AI-fueled selloff. “You’ve a sharply oversold market where a little bit of good news can go a long way,” said Keith Lerner, chief investment officer at Truist Advisory Services. 5
The focus for PayPal isn’t just one quarter. The real question: Can it halt share losses at checkout and rekindle traction with major merchants—without bleeding margin? Investors keep hearing about “near-term” steps in progress, though specifics on timing are still vague.
There’s a risk lurking here. Should consumer spending remain patchy, and rivals keep squeezing PayPal on mobile wallets and buy-now-pay-later, the company could be looking at more estimate downgrades—maybe even a fresh expectations reset, new CEO or not.
Traders now turn to U.S. payrolls on Wednesday, then consumer inflation figures set for Friday. PayPal is also in focus, with markets eyeing any fresh signals on priorities ahead of Lores stepping in as CEO March 1.
