August 15, 2024
Top 10 Stock PayPal Strong Buy Recommendation



How to read the ranks

For every stock, we judge its performance against its peers and rank it on a scale of 1 to 100. The higher the rank, the better the stock performs than its peers. And, we do this for six investment strategies:

Value - shows how good of a value the stock is. Green is "inexpensive"; red is "expensive".

Growth - shows a company's growth potential. Green is "high growth" expected; red is "tough times ahead".

Safety - relates to the amount of debt a company has. Green is low debt level; red is high debt level.

Combined Financial - this isn't an average of the first three ranks but rather a consolidated view across several financial indicators. Green = good; red = tread carefully.

(NEW) Sentiment - quantifies professional analyst ratings and holdings as well as market pulse. Green = positive sentiment; red = skepticism (Only available to Premium Subscribers).

(NEW) 360° View - the ultimate rating with all financial and non-financial indicators.

Snapshot: PayPal – Top 10 Stock in Employee Satisfaction Leaders in the United States


paypal.com


PayPal is listed as a top 10 stock on August 15, 2024 in the market index Employee Focus US because of its high performance in at least one of the Obermatt investment strategies. Two consolidated Obermatt Ranks are above-average. The company is safely financed and the professional investor sentiment is positive. Both are encouraging signals for a stock purchase decision, albeit at an above-average share price. Based on the Obermatt 360° View of 86 (top 86% performer), Obermatt assesses an overall strong buy recommendation for PayPal on August 15, 2024.


Snapshot: Obermatt Ranks


Country USA
Industry Data Processing & Outsourcing
Index Employee Focus US, Diversity USA, Human Rights, Renewables Users, NASDAQ 100, NASDAQ, S&P 500
Size class XX-Large
Latest Research


Top 10 Stocks ≠ most popular stocks

When Obermatt identifies the Top 10 stocks in a market, it’s based on a certain investment strategy. The best performing stocks usually aren’t the ones that everyone is talking about (those are often "over-priced" and have low Value ranks).

For each investment strategy, we provide you with more detailed analysis and our recommendation. You see the ranks of the top 10 stocks ranked by that particular investment strategy (360° View, Sentiment, Value, Growth, Safety and Combined Financial Performance).


360° View: Obermatt 360° View PayPal Strong Buy

360 METRICS August 15, 2024
VALUE
VALUE
GROWTH
GROWTH
SAFETY
SAFETY
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT
360° VIEW
360° VIEW

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt 360° View of 86 (better than 86% compared with alternatives) for 2024, overall professional sentiment and financial characteristics for the stock PayPal are very positive. The 360° View is based on consolidating four consolidated indicators, with half below and half above average for PayPal. The consolidated Sentiment Rank has a good rank of 83, which means that professional investors are more optimistic about the stock than for 83% of alternative investment opportunities. It also rates well regarding its financing structure, with the consolidated Safety Rank at 95 or better than 95% of its peers when looking at the amount of its debt, its refinancing requirements, and its ability to service debt. But the stock is expensive and expects low growth. The consolidated Value Rank is only 38, meaning that the share price of PayPal is on the high side, compared with indicators such as revenues, profits, and invested capital. The company exhibits below-average growth momentum when looking at financial metrics such as revenue, profit, invested capital growth,and stock returns, with its Growth Rank at 43. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated 360° View of 86, PayPal is better positioned than 86% of all alternative stock investment opportunities based on the Obermatt Method. As only half of the consolidated Obermatt Ranks exhibit excellent performance, namely the positive professional market sentiment (Sentiment Rank of 83) and safe financing practices (Safety Rank of 95), the case for investing in this stock needs further thought. The Value and the Safety Ranks are below average. The Safety Rank is the least critical of the four consolidated ranks, because it only reflects financing practices. So the question is: How to assess below-average value against above-average sentiment? This may be a case where growth is in the future, not yet reflected in current performance. Companies that might fall into this category are those with intellectual property, such as technology and pharmaceutical companies. In early phases, they are expensive relative to their size and have a lot of capital on their books, as is the case here. Investors expect a better future and are willing to pay a higher price than is warranted by the current company size. These higher prices drive stock price value down in the short term. In this case, future growth may be the strongest driver of the investment case, reflected by institutional investors' opinions. With a weak Value Rank, the question is how much to sacrifice value at the cost of positive sentiment. Sometimes market sentiment is just hype, but sometimes it is right. You pay more than market-average for this stock, but it may be worth it, if the future of PayPaḷ is bright. Prudent investors may only want to invest a smaller portion of their wealth in such situations. Young investors can carry more risk but should still thrive for sufficient diversification. ...read more




Sentiment Strategy: Professional Market Sentiment for PayPal very positive

SENTIMENT METRICS August 15, 2024
ANALYST OPINION
ANALYST OPINION
OPINIONS CHANGE
OPINIONS CHANGE
PRO HOLDINGS
PRO HOLDINGS
MARKET PULSE
MARKET PULSE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Sentiment Rank of 83 (better than 83% compared with alternatives) for 2024, overall professional sentiment and engagement for the stock PayPal is very positive. The Sentiment Rank is based on consolidating four sentiment indicators, with all but one indicator above average for PayPal. Analyst Opinions are at a rank of 32 (worse than 68% of alternative investments), which means that currently, stock research analysts tend to warn against investing in the stock of the company. But they are changing their opinions! Analyst Opinions Change has a rank of 90, which indicates a shift in stock research experts opinions for the better. In other words, they are getting more optimistic about stock investments in PayPal. Even better, the Professional Investors rank is 96, meaning that professional investors hold more stock in this company than in 96% of alternative investment opportunities. Pros tend to favor investing in this company. Furthermore, Market Pulse has a rank of 58, which means that the current professional news and professional social networks are upbeat when discussing this company (more positive news than for 58% of competitors). ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Sentiment Rank of 83 (more positive than 83% compared with investment alternatives), PayPal has a reputation among professional investors that is significantly higher than that of its competitors. While analysts are still critical of the company, some are changing their minds. In addition, the professional news channels are optimistic, and many institutional investors have already bought stock in the company. These are encouraging signals, despite the still lower level of analyst recommendations. They may be due to a problematic past, and about to change. The positive sentiment signals are stronger than the negative. ...read more



Value Strategy: PayPal Stock Price Value below-average critical

VALUE METRICS August 15, 2024
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)
PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book)
DIVIDEND YIELD
DIVIDEND YIELD
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE
CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 38 (worse than 62% compared with alternatives), PayPal shares are more expensive than the average comparable stock. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, where half the indicators are below and half are above average for PayPal. Price-to-Sales (P/S) is 57, which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future sales is lower than for 57% of comparable companies, indicating a good value concerning PayPal's revenue size. The same is valid for expected Price-to-Profits (or Price / Earnings, P/E), more favorable than for 58% of alternatives. It is also positive for expected dividend yields with a Dividend Yield rank of 1 (dividends are expected to be higher than for 1% of other stocks). But, compared with other companies in the same industry, the Price-to-Book Capital ratio (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) is higher than average, making the stock more expensive. Only 54% of all competitors have an even higher price compared with book capital which puts the Price-to-Capital Rank for PayPal to 46. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 38, is a hold recommendation based on PayPal's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. A low level of book capital means that the company has a business that is leaner on assets than its competitors. For instance, the company could be leasing its production facilities, or be more focussed on intellectual property, such as its brand and software, which is less visible in its book capital. If that is the case, the low Dividend Yield is also explained as such companies tend to invest their income into market development. The other good value ranks for Sales and Profits are encouraging indicators for the stock price value. ...read more



Growth Strategy: PayPal Growth Momentum low

GROWTH METRICS August 15, 2024
REVENUE GROWTH
REVENUE GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH
PROFIT GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH
CAPITAL GROWTH
STOCK RETURNS
STOCK RETURNS
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH
CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 43 (better than 43% compared with alternatives), PayPal shows a below-average growth dynamic in its industry. There is limited momentum in this company. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with three out of four indicators below average for PayPal. Only Capital Growth has a good rank of 94, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow its invested capital more than 14% of its competitors. The other three indicators are pointing South: Sales Growth has a rank of 48 which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow less than 52% of its competitors. Profit Growth with a rank of 14 and Stock Returns with a rank of 48 are also low (below 52% of alternative investments). ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 43, is a hold recommendation for growth and momentum investors. The good news from the invested capital side is surprising. A company with disappointing revenues, profits, and disappointed shareholders typically doesn't invest above average. Overall, the growth momentum for PayPal is thus negative. As it is intriguing to see that company executives are optimistic about their investment policy, it is worthwhile looking into the details of the capital investment projects. They may indicate future growth and profits and thus if accompanied by a good value, a sign of good timing to invest in the stock. ...read more



Safety Strategy: PayPal Debt Financing Safety very solid

SAFETY METRICS August 15, 2024
LEVERAGE
LEVERAGE
REFINANCING
REFINANCING
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 95 (better than 95% compared with alternatives) for 2024, the company PayPal has safe financing practices, which means that their overall debt burden is low. This doesn't mean that the business of PayPal is safe, it only means that the company is on the safer side regarding possible bankruptcy, assuming that public reporting is correct. The Safety Rank is based on consolidating three financing indicators, where all three are above average for PayPal. Leverage is at 72, meaning the company has a below-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has less debt than 72% of its competitors. Refinancing is at a rank of 54, meaning that the portion of the debt about to be refinanced is below average. It has less debt in the refinancing stage than 54% of its competitors. Finally, Liquidity is also good at a rank of 89, which means that the company generates more profit to service its debt than 89% of its competitors. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 95 (better than 95% compared with alternatives), PayPal has a financing structure that is significantly safer than that of its competitors. These three positive financing indicators signal that the company is less likely to default on its debt obligations. However, it also means that its shareholder returns will be more modest if things go well. A low safety means fewer troubles in downtimes and less upside in good times. ...read more



Combined financial peformance: PayPal Above-Average Financial Performance

COMBINED PERFORMANCE August 15, 2024
VALUE
VALUE
GROWTH
GROWTH
SAFETY
SAFETY
COMBINED
COMBINED

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 66 (better than 66% compared with investment alternatives), PayPal (Data Processing & Outsourcing, USA) shares have above-average financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of PayPal are low in value (priced high) with a consolidated Value Rank of 38 (worse than 62% of alternatives) and show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 43) but are safely financed (Safety Rank of 95), which means low debt burdens. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 66, is a buy recommendation based on PayPal's financial characteristics. As the company PayPal's critical financial metrics exhibit below-average performance, such as low value (Obermatt Value Rank of 38) and low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 43), it is a somewhat questionable stock investment, where the risk of paying too much for the shares is significant, unless the company has an exceptionally bright future. In this case, good financing practices (Obermatt Safety Rank of 95) are a positive sign, because it may allow the company to weather challenging times until the hoped-for cash flows materialize. This may be true for high-tech or biotechnology companies with enough cash to sustain prolonged business development. If they own properties that only provide cash flows in the future, the stock may look excessively expensive and unattractive today. In such cases, the Obermatt Method has limited value, as it is based on facts we can observe today. If the facts lie all in the future, stock investing becomes guesswork, and this should only be a driver in a limited number of investments that account for a small fraction of a safe portfolio. ...read more

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