January 30, 2025
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 Human Rights Leaders


paypal.com


PayPal is listed as a top 10 stock on January 30, 2025 in the market index Human Rights because of its high performance in at least one of the Obermatt investment strategies. As three out of four consolidated Obermatt Ranks exhibit excellent performance, it is a solid investment where the risk of paying too much for the shares is low, despite a currently slow growth momentum. Based on the Obermatt 360° View of 95 (top 95% performer), Obermatt assesses an overall strong buy recommendation for PayPal on January 30, 2025.


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 January 30, 2025
VALUE
VALUE
GROWTH
GROWTH
SAFETY
SAFETY
SENTIMENT
SENTIMENT
360° VIEW
360° VIEW

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt 360° View of 95 (better than 95% compared with alternatives) for 2025, 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 of the indicators below and half above average for PayPal. The consolidated Value Rank has an attractive rank of 56, which means that the share price of PayPal is on the lower side compared with typical size in indicators such as revenues, profits, and invested capital. This means the stock price is lower than for 56% of alternative stocks in the same industry. The company is also safely financed with a Safety rank of 98. In addition, professional market sentiment is above average compared with other stock investment alternatives with a Sentiment Rank of 75. But the consolidated Growth Rank has a low rank of 41, which means that the company is below average in terms of growth and momentum when looking at financial metrics such as revenue, profit, and invested capital growth as well as stock returns. 59 of its competitors have better growth. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated 360° View of 95, PayPal is better positioned than 95% of all alternative stock investment opportunities based on the Obermatt Method. Three out of four consolidated Obermatt Ranks show above-average performance. The stock has as good value (Value Rank of 56), secure financing practices (Safety Rank of 98), and positive market sentiment in the professional investor community (Sentiment Rank of 75). It is a solid stock investment where the risk of paying too much for the shares is limited, and disappointments are less likely to occur. The company’s growth expectations are below the industry average (Growth Rank of 41), but that could also be temporary since professional investors remain optimistic despite the low growth numbers. The low price as reflected in the good Value Rank could indicate that the company's future is challenging. The below-par growth performance may be the reason for this. Companies that grow less are typically cheaper than fast-growing competitors. We recommend evaluating whether the future of PayPal is as difficult as the stock’s low price suggests, despite the positive professional investor sentiment. Since the professional community is optimistic, you might have less to worry about, and the stock may just go through a more challenging phase now, indicating good timing. ...read more




Sentiment Strategy: Professional Market Sentiment for PayPal very positive

SENTIMENT METRICS January 30, 2025
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 75 (better than 75% compared with alternatives) for 2025, 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 38 (worse than 62% 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 50, 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 90, meaning that professional investors hold more stock in this company than in 90% of alternative investment opportunities. Pros tend to favor investing in this company. Furthermore, Market Pulse has a rank of 51, which means that the current professional news and professional social networks are upbeat when discussing this company (more positive news than for 51% of competitors). ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Sentiment Rank of 75 (more positive than 75% 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 better than average

VALUE METRICS January 30, 2025
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 56 (better than 56% compared with alternatives), PayPal shares are more attractively priced than the majority of comparable stocks. 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 70% 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 58% of all competitors have an even higher price compared with book capital which puts the Price-to-Capital Rank for PayPal to 42. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 56, is a buy 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 January 30, 2025
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 41 (better than 41% 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 half of the indicators below and half above average for PayPal. Capital Growth has a rank of 80, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow its invested capital more than 12% of its competitors. Investors welcomed this, visible in the Stock Returns rank of 79 (above 79% of alternative investments). But Sales Growth has only a rank of 26, which means that, currently, professionals expect the company to grow less than 74% of its competitors, and Profit Growth is also low at a rank of 12. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 41, is a hold recommendation for growth and momentum investors. This is an ambiguous picture. Revenue growth and capital growth are strong, but the growth in profit, which seems good, can also be an indication that growth momentum may be negative. The fact that stock returns have been above average doesn't help much, as stock returns are less reliable in showing a company’s future growth potential. Prices may perform well for the simple reason that investors were too pessimistic in the past and are now correcting their opinions and moving the stock price to a more reasonable level. As the growth picture is mixed for PayPal, investors may want to look at value and sentiment indicators for a well-rounded picture of this stock. ...read more



Safety Strategy: PayPal Debt Financing Safety very solid

SAFETY METRICS January 30, 2025
LEVERAGE
LEVERAGE
REFINANCING
REFINANCING
LIQUIDITY
LIQUIDITY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY
CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 98 (better than 98% compared with alternatives) for 2025, 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, with two out of three indicators above-average for PayPal. Refinancing is at 70, meaning the portion of the debt that is about to be refinanced is below average. It has less debt in the refinancing stage than 70% of its competitors. Liquidity is also good at 85, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 85% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is safer when it comes to debt service. However, Leverage is rather large at 49, which means the company has an above-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has more debt than 51% of its competitors. ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 98 (better than 98% compared with alternatives), PayPal has a financing structure that is significantly safer than that of its competitors. This is not bad if things go well. The higher debt level means better returns to shareholders if things go well. Many top-performing companies operate with higher debt levels, and PayPal could be in that group. But if you expect the environment to turn rougher, the higher leverage could become a problem. The same is valid if you expect interest rates to rise. That could squeeze shareholder returns, which so far have benefitted from better conditions. ...read more



Combined financial peformance: PayPal Top Financial Performance

COMBINED PERFORMANCE January 30, 2025
VALUE
VALUE
GROWTH
GROWTH
SAFETY
SAFETY
COMBINED
COMBINED

ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 84 (better than 84% compared with investment alternatives), PayPal (Data Processing & Outsourcing, USA) shares have much better financial characteristics than comparable stocks. Shares of PayPal are a good value (attractively priced) with a consolidated Value Rank of 56 (better than 56% of alternatives), are safely financed (Safety Rank of 98, which means low debt burdens), but show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 41). ...read more

RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 84, is a strong buy recommendation based on PayPal's financial characteristics. As the company PayPal's key financial metrics exhibit good value (Obermatt Value Rank of 56) but low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 41) while being safely financed (Obermatt Safety Rank of 98), it may be a safer investment because companies with low debt can better withstand times of crises. Yet the good value, better than 56% of comparable companies, may also indicate that the company's future is challenging. If you believe that low growth is temporary or just due to a specific current event, you may conclude that the good value of the stock provides an attractive investment opportunity and the downside is limited due to below-average financing risks. ...read more

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