NEW YORK, February 6, 2026, 15:22 EST — Regular session
- PayPal stock edged up after tumbling earlier this week, a drop sparked by its earnings report and news of a shake-up at the top.
- Several brokers lowered their targets and flagged that growth in PayPal’s core checkout operation is increasingly tough to come by.
- Investors want to see whether the company can hold onto its slice of the online payments market.
Shares of PayPal Holdings, Inc. rose 0.8% to $40.23 Friday afternoon, moving within a range of $39.39 to $40.58 through the session.
PayPal shares have been struggling since Tuesday. Investors reacted to the CEO’s departure, a disappointing 2026 forecast, weaker quarterly results, and lagging growth in its key “branded checkout” segment—all hitting at once. 1
Canaccord Genuity analyst Joseph Vafi wasted no time downgrading PayPal, shifting to hold from buy and slashing his price target down to $42 from $100. Vafi flagged that the commerce sector is “consolidating around larger vendors” that skip PayPal, while Apple Pay and Google Pay keep chipping away at the need for that button. JPMorgan’s Tien-tsin Huang, staying neutral, trimmed his target to $46 from $70 and pointed out that branded volumes remain “a material P&L driver.” 2
Several firms aren’t budging from a cautious stance. Compass Point moved its rating up to neutral from sell but pared back its target to $51. TD Cowen stuck with a hold-equivalent rating and dropped its target to $48, their notes show. 3
Branded checkout refers to the familiar PayPal button visible at online stores. It usually delivers better margins than unbranded processing, making even minor changes in volume growth significant for profits.
PayPal faced renewed outside backlash. On X, former president David Marcus slammed the company, saying it has “lost its mojo,” and followed up by claiming it’s lost “its ability to compete.” He singled out Apple Pay, Klarna, and Afterpay as rivals outpacing PayPal. 4
Bulls face a tough reality: fixes don’t come cheap or fast. Compass Point isn’t optimistic about PayPal turning things around quickly, warning it could be “many years” before the platform evolves enough to halt its market share slide. For now, the firm sees little to drive earnings per share higher besides buybacks. 5
Citizens took PayPal down a notch after the latest earnings, but pointed to strong assets like Braintree, Venmo, and BNPL (buy now, pay later) still in the mix. Even so, the firm warned that investors keep coming back to the same question: Can PayPal boost branded checkout without pouring more money into perks and incentives for merchants? 6
Leadership at PayPal shifts soon. HP Inc. chief Enrique Lores is now set to step in as CEO on March 1, according to a filing. Until then, finance chief Jamie Miller will handle the interim CEO role. 7
