PayPal Shares Slide to Fresh Lows as Results disappoint and CEO Shake-Up Unfolds, While AI Travel Initiative Debuts

Key observations:
- Shares declined to $38.49, the weakest level in roughly a year
- Rothschild & Co and Redburn trimmed targets to $32 from $50, with a Sell rating
- About a 30% stock decline since the earnings warning issued on February 3
- A new AI-enabled travel-booking collaboration was unveiled
- CEO transition set for March 1, with Enrique Lores taking the helm

Analysts keep dialing down their outlooks

In the wake of the softer Q4 results, several market researchers intensified the negative outlooks. Target cuts included Rothschild & Co and Redburn, which slashed their price targets from $50 to $32 and reaffirmed a Sell rating. Wells Fargo lowered its target from $67 to $48, while Macquarie reduced its target from $100 to $58; Macquarie, however, continues to rate the stock as a Buy.

Market consensus from MarketBeat shows a broad mix among analysts: 10 rated the shares as a Buy, 30 as a Hold, and 4 as a Sell. The uncertainty centers largely on PayPal?s core business, where branded checkout volumes grew by just 1% in the fourth quarter.

AI push extends into travel

Despite headwinds, PayPal announced on February 12 a collaboration with Sabre Corporation and Mindtrip to build an AI-powered travel-booking platform, slated to launch in early Q2 2026. The venture fuses Mindtrip?s AI chatbot with PayPal?s payments technology and Sabre?s travel infrastructure, which connects users to more than 420 airlines and two million properties.

Users will be able to describe travel wishes in natural language, receive personalized recommendations, and complete bookings directly within the chat?initially for flights and later for hotels.

Michelle Gill, a PayPal manager, commented: ?Travel is a complex purchase. Speed and flexibility at the checkout are central.? The platform aims to cover the entire process from search to booking without leaving the chat interface.

Should investors sell immediately? Or is it worth buying PayPal?

Leadership change weighs on sentiment

The stock decline followed the February 3 announcement that the board would replace CEO Alex Chriss. Enrique Lores, the former HP chief, is set to assume the role on March 1, with chief financial officer Jamie Miller serving in an interim capacity until then.

Management cited execution issues, particularly with the branded checkout. For 2026, the guidance was cautious: the transaction margin is expected to edge lower, and adjusted earnings per share are likely to be flat to down slightly.

Valuation and capital returns

PayPal?s market capitalization sits around $35.6 billion. Its price-to-earnings ratio stands near 7.15, a relatively rare trough for the company. The payments provider plans about $6 billion in share repurchases during 2026 and pays a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share, with the ex-dividend date set for March 4, 2026.

The AI initiative signals strategic ambition, but the pressing question remains whether the new leadership can stabilize the core business before further analysts throw in the towel. The coming months should reveal whether the current valuation represents a floor or faces additional downside pressure.

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