Block Inc (NYSE:SQ) and PayPal Holdings Inc (NASDAQ:PYPL) were featured as part of the call of the day Wednesday on CNBC's "Fast Money Halftime Report."
What Happened: Stephens & Co. initiated coverage on Block with an Equal-Weight rating and announced a $170 price target. The firm also initiated coverage on PayPal with an Equal-Weight rating and a $135 price target.
Why It Matters: Virtus Investment Partners' Joe Terranova disagrees with the call. He doesn't see anything that can turn the pair of fintech stocks around anytime soon, he explained.
Terranova sold Square at $250 and PayPal at $230 when the stocks showed signs of slowing momentum. He noted that both stocks have also deteriorated from a quality and fundamental perspective.
"I don't see anything that would give me an indication that that's going to begin to reverse itself," Terranova said. "I'm not sure what the fundamental catalyst ultimately is for Block or for PayPal other than just looking at the chart and seeing it looking pretty ugly towards the bottom."
Related Link: Benzinga's Top Ratings Upgrades, Downgrades For April 6, 2022
Terranova suggested the analyst may be making the call for upside from current levels simply because of the outsized declines in the fintech space over the last year or so.
SQ, PYPL Price Action: Block is down approximately 49% over a one-year period and PayPal is down about 56% over the same amount of time.
According to data from Benzinga Pro, Block is down 8.12% at $124.91 and PayPal is down 5.65% at $111 at time of publication.
Photo: courtesy of Block.
