Key Points
Private companies Stripe and Advent may bid $53 billion to acquire PayPal.
PayPal stock looks cheap at under 9 times earnings.
So does Fiserv stock.
It's mergers & acquisitions day at the fintech market.
Reports that privately held companies Stripe and Advent, and maybe publicly traded Block (NYSE: XYZ), too, have offered to buy PayPal Holdings (NASDAQ: PYPL) for $53 billion sent that stock flying 17.1% higher through 11 a.m. ET Wednesday.
Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now, when you join Stock Advisor. See the stocks »
These same rumors may be lifting Fiserv (NASDAQ: FISV) shares, which are up 4.7%.
Image source: Getty Images.
Buying PayPal
CNBC reports that Stripe, Advent, and Block have offered to acquire PayPal for $60.50 per share, nearly 28% above PayPal's closing price last night. Not all the details of the transaction are clear, none of the companies reportedly involved are commenting on the report -- and it could be that no merger will happen. Nevertheless, PayPal investors are clearly excited at the prospect.
So are Fiserv investors.
What a PayPal buyout might mean for Fiserv
Why? Just take a look at the numbers.
PayPal and Fiserv aren't direct competitors, with PayPal being a more consumer-facing financial services company (B2C) facilitating payments among peers, while Fiserv operates more on the back end, running the plumbing of financial transactions and processing payments among businesses (B2B). That said, the industry is the same, and the valuations are similar -- and Fiserv looks like an even more attractive takeover target than PayPal.
At today's share price, PayPal stock costs only 8.9 times trailing (and forward) earnings. Fiserv is cheaper at just 8.4x trailing earnings, and a mere 6.2x forward earnings. According to analysts polled by S&P Global Market Intelligence, both companies have similar projected growth rates of 5.8% over the next five years.
Long story short, if Stripe and Advent think PayPal's a buy at 8.9x earnings, there's every reason to believe they, or someone else, may soon reach the same conclusion about Fiserv -- and offer to buy it, too.
Rich Smith has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Block and PayPal. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: short September 2026 $47.50 calls on PayPal. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.