The payments giant reported adjusted quarterly earnings of 1,23 dollar per share, missing analysts’ expectations of 1,29 dollar. Revenue also fell short, coming in at 8,68 billion dollar — around 90 million dollar below the average analyst estimate.

While total payment volume rose by 9 percent to 475 billion dollar, growth disappointed in a particularly important segment. In «Branded Checkout» — the company’s most profitable product line built around the classic PayPal button — currency-adjusted volume increased by just 1 percent, sharply down from the 8 percent growth seen in previous quarters.

Fewer Transactions per Account

Overall, PayPal also missed its own full-year earnings-per-share forecast. The company reported 5,31 dollar per share, after having guided for 5,35 dollar to 5,39 dollar in October. PayPal had raised its annual outlook twice — in July and again in October — only to fall short in the end.

During the earnings call, management cited a pronounced slowdown in several high-growth areas in the fourth quarter, particularly travel, ticket sales, cryptocurrencies and gaming.

Transactions per active account fell by 5 percent over twelve months to 57,7. The number of active accounts grew only marginally, reaching 439 million.

Too Slow

The weak results have triggered a swift change at the top. On March 1, HP CEO Enrique Lores will take over as PayPal’s CEO from Alex Chriss. Chriss had only joined the digital payments company in September 2023 as president and CEO, having previously worked as an executive at US software group Intuit.

Lores has been a member of PayPal’s board for nearly five years but will now also take over operational leadership, leaving HP after more than six years at the helm. David Dorman, the newly appointed chairman of the board, justified the decision in unusually blunt terms: «The pace of change and execution did not meet the board’s expectations.»

Until Lores assumes the role on March 1, CFO Jamie Miller will serve as interim CEO.

Outlook Adds to Pressure

For the first quarter, PayPal expects a “mid-single-digit” decline in earnings — whereas analysts had been forecasting growth. For the full year, the company is guiding for a slight decline or, at best, flat earnings. PayPal shares fell by as much as 18 percent in pre-market trading.