PayPal Stock Hasn’t Looked This Good In A While — Q1 Earnings Will Confirm If The Comeback Is Real

• Analysts expect the company to report revenue of $8.06 billion for the upcoming quarter, an increase of about 3.4% compared to the prior comparable quarter of 2025.
• PayPal’s new CEO has recently reorganized the firm’s reporting to separate Venmo from its other operations. 
• PYPL stock has an average 12-month price target of $52.97, indicating an upside potential of about 5% from the last close.

Shares of PayPal Holdings (PYPL) clocked their best month in almost two years, surging nearly 11% in April as takeover speculations fueled a price reversal.

The digital payments company’s shares have fallen more than 26% in the past year, which drove a potential buying interest in the company, Bloomberg reported earlier this month.  

Meanwhile, its cash-to-cash transactions peer, Western Union (WU), has seen its shares decline about 5.5% over the same period.

PayPal’s Reorganization

Meanwhile, PayPal’s new CEO, Enrique Lores, has been working to reorganize the firm to separate Venmo, the company’s payments app, from its other operations.

The company now has three reporting segments, namely Checkout Solutions & PayPal, Consumer Financial Services & Venmo, and Payment Services & Crypto. According to a CNBC report from last week, Venmo’s split into a standalone segment will help track its progress and inform consideration of its potential sale.

Lores is reportedly counting on the improved corporate structure to revive PayPal’s growth amid lost share to Apple (AAPL), Alphabet’s (GOOG, GOOGL) Google, and private payment provider Stripe.

What’s Wall Street Expecting From PYPL Q1 Earnings?

Analysts expect the company to report revenue of $8.06 billion for the upcoming quarter, an increase of about 3.4% from the prior comparable quarter in 2025, according to data from Fiscal.ai. Earnings per share forecasts are at $1.27 per share, marginally lower compared to $1.29 posted in Q1 2025.

Apart from these key figures, the company’s branded checkout momentum, Venmo monetization, and the impact of new leadership are also likely to be critical in the earnings update.

Truist analyst Matthew Coad has raised the price target on PayPal to $45 from $39, while maintaining a ‘Sell’ rating on the shares, as part of a broader research note previewing Q1 results for Payments and Capital Markets names, according to TheFly.

Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Ramsey El-Assal also raised the price target on PayPal to $54 from $42, keeping a ‘Neutral’ rating on the shares. The analyst said that despite concerns about a broader macro slowdown, recent bank results and company commentary suggest consumer spending remains relatively stable. The firm also noted that while thematic headwinds have pressured the sector, the risks appear overstated, and Q1 estimates look largely achievable, with forward guidance and Middle East developments likely to be the main catalysts.

Meanwhile, PYPL stock has an average 12-month price target of $52.97 based on 44 analysts’ estimates, indicating an upside potential of about 5% from the last close, according to data from Koyfin. Of the analysts covering the stock, 10 have a ‘Buy’ or higher rating on its shares, while 30 analysts rate it a ‘Hold’ and four recommend a ‘Sell.’

What’s Retail Saying About PYPL Stock?

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around PYPL stock was in the ‘neutral’ territory at the time of writing amid ‘high’ message volumes.

One user said they were looking for updates on the upcoming earnings call. “Layoffs, take over, ads  whatever....throw us a freaking bone here,” they said.

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