PayPal's stock enjoying best three-day run in 14 months with a key event on deck

By Emily Bary

The payments firm's shares head for their highest close since August as it prepares to show off its 'innovation' next week

PayPal Holdings Inc.'s stock is finishing off the week on a good note.

Shares of the payment-technology company (PYPL) were rising 5.5% in Friday afternoon action, sitting as the second-best performer in the S&P 500 SPX with about two hours left in trading. They're on track for their highest close since Aug. 2, 2023, when they closed at $73.20.

PayPal is on a bit of a hot streak as well, now up for three sessions in a row and ahead 12.1% over that span. The run puts the stock on track for its best three-day stretch since the period ended Nov. 14, 2022, according to Dow Jones Market Data.

PayPal's stock started the week facing a bit more pessimism, as Mizuho analyst Dan Dolev downgraded it on Tuesday. That meant more than half of the analysts covering the company declined to recommend it with a buy-equivalent rating - something that had never been the case before for PayPal, according to monthly FactSet data.

See more: PayPal's stock has reached an unglamorous milestone

Dolev expressed concerns about PayPal's margins as less-profitable unbranded checkout becomes a bigger portion of the business mix, and he also discussed some competitive concerns. Namely, he's worried that Apple Inc.'s (AAPL) Apple Pay is becoming more of a force to be reckoned with, especially as consumers do more shopping on their phones.

Chief Executive Alex Chriss, who took over in the role in September, sought to reassure investors during a Wednesday CNBC appearance. "It is very clear what we need to do," he said, noting that the company plans to roll out new "customer-backed innovation" at an event next Thursday.

"PayPal hasn't delivered the value proposition to its consumers and its merchants over the last few years that I think we're capable of," Chriss said.

-Emily Bary

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01-19-24 1423ET

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