Things are starting to look up for PayPal , according to Daiwa. Analyst Kazuya Nishimura upgraded PayPal to outperform from neutral, citing some bullish developments ahead for the payments company. “We upgraded PYPL to Outperform as a number of positive catalysts are falling into place including cost reductions and a share buyback in response to the increased stake taken by Elliott Investment Management, the appointment of a new CFO, and the decision to hold an Investor Day event,” Nishimura wrote in a Monday note. Shares of PayPal have plunged roughly 45% this year, and are off more than 65% from their 52-week high, as the payments company struggled with slowing e-commerce sales. Still, there have been some positive developments for the payments company. PayPal posted a beat in its most-recent earnings report . The company also disclosed that activist investor Elliott Management has a $2 billion holding in the company. Shares are up 45% this quarter. The analyst raised the 12-month price target to $116 from $85, a 36% increase. The new price target represents about 14% upside from Monday’s closing price of $101.51. “While visibility for the operating environment remains murky, the significant deterioration of the firm’s earnings prospects since last year seems to have played out,” Nishimura wrote. —CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
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