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COF vs. PYPL: Capital One Financial vs. PayPal Stock Comparison

How do Capital One Financial (COF) and PayPal (PYPL) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Capital One Financial (COF) and PayPal (PYPL) both fall under the Financial Services industry group, but COF is classified in Consumer Finance while PYPL is classified in Financial Services.

Company profile comparison for Capital One Financial (COF) and PayPal (PYPL)
Profile ItemCOFPYPL
NameCapital One Financial Corp.PayPal Holdings, Inc.
Country/RegionUnited StatesUnited States
GICS SectorFinancialsFinancials
GICS Industry GroupFinancial ServicesFinancial Services
GICS IndustryConsumer FinanceFinancial Services
GICS Sub-IndustryConsumer FinanceTransaction & Payment Processing Services
Market Capitalization121.43 billion USD49.21 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNYSENasdaq
Listing DateNovember 16, 1994July 6, 2015
Security TypeCommon StockCommon Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

COF
PYPL
GSPC
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Capital One Financial (COF) vs. PayPal (PYPL), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Capital One Financial (COF) and PayPal (PYPL). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Capital One Financial (COF) and PayPal (PYPL). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Capital One Financial (COF) and PayPal (PYPL)
MetricCOFPYPL
Total Return (1Y)-5.89%-7.44%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)26.49%4.14%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)7.24%-21.48%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

COF
PYPL
GSPC
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Capital One Financial (COF) vs. PayPal (PYPL), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Capital One Financial (COF) and PayPal (PYPL). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Capital One Financial (COF) and PayPal (PYPL)
MetricCOFPYPL
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)31.21%42.40%
Beta (5Y)1.091.28
Max Drawdown (5Y)-45.56%-81.84%
Avg. Volume (3M)3.66M11.78M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

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COF and PYPL are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Capital One Financial (COF) and PayPal (PYPL)
MetricCOFPYPL
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)-0.33-0.28
Sortino Ratio (1Y)-0.43-0.37

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

PayPal (PYPL) at 23.83% sits in the top ROE quartile, while Capital One Financial (COF) at 9.39% is closer to the peer norm — stronger capital efficiency for PYPL.

COF

Financial Services industry group

9.39%

Max
44.78%
Q3
21.85%
Median
12.91%
COF
9.39%
Q1
4.48%
Min
-18.71%

PYPL

Financial Services industry group

23.83%

Max
44.78%
PYPL
23.83%
Q3
21.85%
Median
12.91%
Q1
4.48%
Min
-18.71%
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Capital One Financial (COF) vs. PayPal (PYPL): A comparison of their ROE against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Both Capital One Financial (COF) at 22.23% and PayPal (PYPL) at 13.78% keep about the typical share of revenue as profit for their industries — neither bottom line stands out from peers.

COF

Financial Services industry group

22.23%

Max
62.84%
Q3
28.05%
COF
22.23%
Median
15.36%
Q1
4.82%
Min
-28.52%

PYPL

Financial Services industry group

13.78%

Max
62.84%
Q3
28.05%
Median
15.36%
PYPL
13.78%
Q1
4.82%
Min
-28.52%
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Capital One Financial (COF) vs. PayPal (PYPL): A comparison of their net margin against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both Capital One Financial (COF) at 37.83% and PayPal (PYPL) at 18.41% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

COF

Financial Services industry group

37.83%

Max
107.33%
Q3
55.90%
COF
37.83%
Median
30.09%
Q1
14.60%
Min
-44.34%

PYPL

Financial Services industry group

18.41%

Max
107.33%
Q3
55.90%
Median
30.09%
PYPL
18.41%
Q1
14.60%
Min
-44.34%
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Capital One Financial (COF) vs. PayPal (PYPL): A comparison of their operating margin against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Capital One Financial (COF) and PayPal (PYPL)
MetricCOFPYPL
ROE (TTM)9.39%23.83%
ROA (TTM)1.57%4.70%
Net Margin (TTM)22.23%13.78%
Operating Margin (TTM)37.83%18.41%
Gross Margin (TTM)----

Growth

Revenue Growth

Capital One Financial (COF) at 36.62% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while PayPal (PYPL) at 4.32% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for COF.

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Capital One Financial (COF) vs. PayPal (PYPL): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

PayPal (PYPL) at 35.59% is around its peer norm for EPS growth, while Capital One Financial (COF) at -65.23% drops into the bottom quartile, signaling weaker earnings momentum.

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Capital One Financial (COF) vs. PayPal (PYPL): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Capital One Financial (COF) and PayPal (PYPL)
MetricCOFPYPL
Revenue Growth (YoY)36.62%4.32%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)15.98%6.43%
EPS Growth (YoY)-65.23%35.59%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)-39.18%37.30%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

current ratio doesn’t apply on either side: Capital One Financial (COF) in Financial Services and PayPal (PYPL) in Financial Services both report balance sheets without a current/non-current split, so their short-term liquidity is better judged through regulatory and funding measures.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

debt-to-equity ratio is set aside for both: Capital One Financial (COF) in Financial Services and PayPal (PYPL) in Financial Services run businesses where balance-sheet leverage is part of the model, so capital-adequacy and funding measures are the better gauges of balance-sheet risk.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Capital One Financial (COF) and PayPal (PYPL)
MetricCOFPYPL
Current Ratio (MRQ)----
Debt / Equity (MRQ)----
Net Debt / EBITDA----

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both Capital One Financial (COF) at 1.57% and PayPal (PYPL) at 0.95% pay solid, industry-typical yields, sitting squarely within their peers’ usual range.

COF

Financial Services industry group

1.57%

Max
9.77%
Q3
3.92%
COF
1.57%
Median
1.09%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

PYPL

Financial Services industry group

0.95%

Max
9.77%
Q3
3.92%
Median
1.09%
PYPL
0.95%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Capital One Financial (COF) vs. PayPal (PYPL): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Capital One Financial (COF) at 19.61% and PayPal (PYPL) at 10.69% keep payout ratio within their industries’ typical mid-ranges — dividend policies that share earnings without consuming too much of them.

COF

Financial Services industry group

19.61%

Max
241.07%
Q3
97.36%
Median
25.77%
COF
19.61%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

PYPL

Financial Services industry group

10.69%

Max
241.07%
Q3
97.36%
Median
25.77%
PYPL
10.69%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Capital One Financial (COF) vs. PayPal (PYPL): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Capital One Financial (COF) and PayPal (PYPL)
MetricCOFPYPL
Dividend Yield (TTM)1.57%0.95%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)19.61%10.69%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both Capital One Financial (COF) at 12.37 and PayPal (PYPL) at 11.31 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

COF

Financial Services industry group

12.37

Max
45.85
Q3
24.64
Median
15.37
COF
12.37
Q1
9.68
Min
0.16

PYPL

Financial Services industry group

11.31

Max
45.85
Q3
24.64
Median
15.37
PYPL
11.31
Q1
9.68
Min
0.16
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Capital One Financial (COF) vs. PayPal (PYPL): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both Capital One Financial (COF) at 2.48 and PayPal (PYPL) at 1.43 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

COF

Financial Services industry group

2.48

Max
9.23
Q3
4.57
Median
2.72
COF
2.48
Q1
1.28
Min
-0.55

PYPL

Financial Services industry group

1.43

Max
9.23
Q3
4.57
Median
2.72
PYPL
1.43
Q1
1.28
Min
-0.55
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Capital One Financial (COF) vs. PayPal (PYPL): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

On P/B ratio, both Capital One Financial (COF) at 1.15 and PayPal (PYPL) at 2.55 are valued close to their industries’ norm against book — neither stands out from peers.

COF

Financial Services industry group

1.15

Max
7.79
Q3
3.63
Median
1.57
COF
1.15
Q1
0.81
Min
-0.39

PYPL

Financial Services industry group

2.55

Max
7.79
Q3
3.63
PYPL
2.55
Median
1.57
Q1
0.81
Min
-0.39
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Capital One Financial (COF) vs. PayPal (PYPL): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Financial Services industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Capital One Financial (COF) and PayPal (PYPL)
MetricCOFPYPL
P/E Ratio (TTM)12.3711.31
P/S Ratio (TTM)2.481.43
P/B Ratio (MRQ)1.152.55
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)----