Square Falls After Debt Offering Amid Escalating Payment War With PayPal

Shares of point-of-sale-solutions provider Square (SQ) are falling after the company announced a $750M convertible-debt offering as its payment rival PayPal (PYPL) turns up the competition.

Image result for square logo

PAYPAL BUYS PAYMENT STARTUP IZETTLE. Late last week, PayPal announced that it agreed to acquire iZettle, a small business commerce platform in Europe and Latin America, for $2.2B. The acquisition of iZettle significantly expands PayPal's in-store presence, strengthening PayPal's platform to help millions of small businesses around the world grow and thrive in an omnichannel retail environment, said PayPal in a statement. Soon after PayPal announced the acquisition, Morgan Stanley analyst James Faucette said PayPal's acquisition of iZettle, which offers products similar to Square's in 12 markets, is likely to be a check on Square's international expansion efforts, though he said he does not expect PayPal's support of iZettle to challenge Square in the U.S. SQUARE DEBT OFFERING: Late Monday, Square announced a $750M convertible note offering "for general corporate purposes." After Square announced that it will be offering $750M of convertible senior notes due in 2023, Morgan Stanley's analyst Faucette said he believes the offering could help drive more M&A to support international expansion, especially following PayPal's acquisition of iZettle, which could drive an increased sense of urgency. Faucette kept an Equal Weight rating on Square shares.

PRICE ACTION: Shares of Square are down 1.9% while shares of rival PayPal also dropped over 1.1% in midday trading.

 

Disclaimer: TheFly's news is intended for informational purposes only and does not claim to be actionable for investment decisions. Read more at TheFly.com.

How did you like this article? Let us know so we can better customize your reading experience.

Comments

Leave a comment to automatically be entered into our contest to win a free Echo Show.