PayPal shares sink 19% after weak Q4 results, CEO change

PayPal Holdings Inc. said Enrique Lores, CEO of HP Inc., will succeed Alex Chriss as CEO from March 1.

Shares fell as much as 19% after the announcement and after PayPal reported weak fourth-quarter results.

Q4 revenue came in at US$8.7 billion and earnings per share were US$1.23, both missing expectations.

Online checkout growth slowed to 1% in Q4, down from 6% a year earlier.

Chriss, appointed in 2023 to lead a turnaround, focused on profit and the checkout experience but missed targets.

Jamie Miller, interim CEO and PayPal’s chief financial and operating officer, said the company had not moved fast enough.

Lores, who has led HP through industry challenges, will now take over as PayPal faces financial pressure and a cautious analyst outlook.

🔗 Source: Bloomberg

🧠 Food for thought

Implications, context, and why it matters.

PayPal faces more than one weak quarter. Branded online checkout grew 1%, which hurts progress in a higher-margin business line 1.
PayPal expects 2026 full-year adjusted profit to range from a low-single-digit percentage decline to a small gain. Wall Street projected about 8% growth 1.
Incoming CEO Enrique Lores tackled a similar test at HP. He delivered six straight quarters of revenue growth, yet the stock fell 36% over the past year 2.
PayPal’s board replaced CEO Alex Chriss after deciding the speed of change fell short of expectations. The choice signals a push for faster delivery and tighter follow-through 1.

PayPal’s situation fits a wider shift in mature technology companies, especially in fintech (financial technology). The hyper-growth era is fading.
PayPal started its first dividend and approved a $6 billion stock buyback. The focus moves from expansion talk to shareholder returns 3.
This approach favors cost control and cash returns over riskier growth bets. It has long been common in legacy tech, now it lands in first-generation fintech giants facing fierce competition and market saturation.
Choosing a hardware operator over a fintech visionary signals board priorities during a downturn. Steady management can outrank big makeover plans 1.