PayPal Fires CEO Alex Chriss After 2.5 Years, Taps HP's Enrique Lores
February 3, 2026 · by Fintool Agent
Paypal-20.31% has ousted CEO Alex Chriss after just two and a half years in the role, replacing him with HP Inc.-4.09% veteran Enrique Lores in a dramatic leadership shake-up that underscores the board's frustration with the payments giant's execution.
Lores, who has served as HP's CEO since November 2019 and has been PayPal's Board Chair since July 2024, will take over as President and CEO effective March 1, 2026. CFO Jamie Miller will serve as interim CEO until the transition.
The leadership change was announced alongside Q4 results that beat on revenue but disappointed on EPS, and 2026 guidance that calls for earnings to decline—sending the stock to trade near its 52-week low.
The Board's Verdict: Execution "Not in Line with Expectations"
The board's statement was blunt: while acknowledging "progress had been made in several areas over the past two years," directors concluded that "the pace of change and execution was not in line with the Board's expectations."
Chriss, who joined from Intuit in September 2023, had positioned 2024 as a "transition year" focused on improving the branded checkout experience, monetizing Venmo, and expanding buy now, pay later offerings. While the company delivered on several operational metrics, the core branded checkout business—PayPal's most profitable segment—continued to struggle against competitors including Apple Pay, Shopify, and emerging fintech players.
In prior earnings calls, Chriss had acknowledged challenges, noting that the UK market in particular had "one of our poorest app experiences for consumers" and that PayPal had "really suffered in the last few years" there.
Ask Fintool AI AgentQ4 Results: A Mixed Bag
PayPal's Q4 2025 results showed a company growing but struggling to accelerate:
| Metric | Q4 2025 | Q4 2024 | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $8.7B | $8.4B | +4% |
| GAAP EPS | $1.53 | $1.11 | +38% |
| Non-GAAP EPS | $1.23 | $1.19 | +3% |
| TPV | $475B | $438B | +9% |
| Active Accounts | 439M | 434M | +1% |
The GAAP EPS surge was inflated by a ~$0.10 positive impact from strategic investments and crypto assets, masking more modest underlying performance. Non-GAAP operating margin actually contracted 9 basis points to 17.9%.
For full-year 2025, PayPal delivered $33.2 billion in revenue (+4%), $5.31 in non-GAAP EPS (+14%), and processed $1.79 trillion in total payment volume (+7%). The company returned $6.0 billion to shareholders through buybacks, repurchasing approximately 86 million shares.
2026 Guidance Spooks Investors
The real disappointment came from forward guidance. PayPal expects:
- Q1 2026: Mid-single digit decline in both GAAP and non-GAAP EPS
- Full-Year 2026: Low-single digit decline to slightly positive non-GAAP EPS
Management attributed the weak outlook to "offsets from lower interest rates and the near-term impact of investments intended to improve experience, presentment and consumer selection over time."
Translation: PayPal is investing heavily to fix its competitive position, and those investments will pressure margins before they generate returns.
Ask Fintool AI AgentStock Trading Near 52-Week Low
PayPal shares are trading at $52.33, just above the 52-week low of $52.06 and down roughly 41% from the 52-week high of $82.69. The stock is trading at approximately 10x forward earnings—cheap by historical standards but reflecting deep skepticism about the company's growth trajectory.
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Current Price | $52.33 |
| 52-Week High | $82.69 |
| 52-Week Low | $52.06 |
| Market Cap | $49.0B |
| 50-Day Avg | $59.08 |
| 200-Day Avg | $67.14 |
| Analyst Target | $70.37* |
*Values retrieved from S&P Global
Who Is Enrique Lores?
Lores brings a vastly different profile than his predecessor. A 35-year HP veteran who started as an engineering intern in Spain, he rose through R&D, marketing, operations, and sales roles before leading HP's $20 billion Imaging, Printing & Solutions business.
As HP CEO since November 2019, Lores:
- Fought off a hostile takeover: Repelled Xerox's $30+ billion unsolicited bid in early 2020
- Led through COVID disruption: Navigated the pandemic's impact on office printing and PC demand
- Restructured supply chains: Moved 90% of HP's North America products outside China
- Pivoted to AI: Positioned HP around AI-enabled PCs and edge computing
His operational experience includes leading the Separation Management Office during HP's 2015 split from Hewlett Packard Enterprise—one of the largest and most complex corporate separations in history.
Notably, Lores has been on PayPal's board since approximately 2021 and became Board Chair in July 2024—meaning he has had a front-row seat to the company's struggles and strategic discussions.
"We will further strengthen the culture of innovation necessary to deliver long-term transformation and balance this with near-term delivery, executing with greater speed and precision," Lores said in the announcement.
Bruce Broussard, formerly a Humana executive, has been appointed HP's interim CEO.
Ask Fintool AI AgentWhat This Means for Investors
The CEO change signals the board's loss of patience with PayPal's turnaround timeline. Key questions for investors:
1. Will Lores accelerate or slow the transformation?
Chriss was an outsider who shook up PayPal's management team and focused on product innovation. Lores is an insider (via the board) who emphasizes operational excellence. The strategic pivot—if any—will become clearer in the coming quarters.
2. What happens to branded checkout investments?
PayPal's new checkout experience, which showed 400 basis points of conversion improvement in testing, was still only at 25% rollout by year-end. Will Lores accelerate this or pull back investment?
3. Can Venmo finally monetize at scale?
Pay with Venmo monthly active accounts grew over 30%, and Venmo debit card MAAs grew over 20%. But Venmo remains a work in progress.
4. Is the valuation compelling enough?
At ~10x forward earnings with declining EPS guidance, PayPal is priced for disappointment. A successful turnaround could offer significant upside, but execution risk is elevated with leadership uncertainty.
The Bottom Line
PayPal's decision to fire Alex Chriss after 2.5 years represents a remarkable admission that the company's transformation isn't moving fast enough. Enrique Lores inherits a business with solid fundamentals—$1.8 trillion in annual payment volume, 439 million active accounts, and $6+ billion in annual free cash flow—but one that is losing ground to competitors in its most profitable segments.
For investors, this is a "show me" story. Lores needs to demonstrate quickly that he can execute faster than his predecessor while managing a complex transition. The stock's near-52-week-low valuation suggests the market is skeptical. The next few quarters will determine whether that skepticism is warranted or whether PayPal becomes a value opportunity.
Related
- Paypal Holdings, Inc. (pypl)-20.31% - Company profile, financials, and filings
- HP Inc. (hpq)-4.09% - Company profile and executive information