UPST vs MELI vs PYPL Stock Comparison

Upstart Holdings, Mercadolibre and PayPal Holdings Prices as of Oct 28, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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UPST Upstart Holdings, Inc.
$24.14 +4.8% 1M -52.4% 1Y
Market cap
$2.39B
P/E
39.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$1.25B
Div. yield
–
Digital Lending Technology
1 win
MELI Mercadolibre Inc
$1,673.09 -2.3% 1M -26.9% 1Y
Market cap
$83.63B
P/E
44.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$35.18B
Div. yield
–
Digital Marketplaces Technology
3 wins
PYPL PayPal Holdings, Inc.
$56.55 +4.2% 1M -22.6% 1Y
Market cap
$48.55B
P/E
10.3x
Revenue (TTM)
$34.30B
Div. yield
–
Payment Processing Technology
7 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

PayPal Holdings leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (PayPal Holdings 7, Mercadolibre 3, Upstart Holdings 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionUPSTMELIPYPLLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $2.39B $83.63B $48.55B MELI
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 39.6x 44.9x 10.3x PYPL
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 35.0x 41.3x 10.2x PYPL
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +48.6% +46.0% +4.4% UPST
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 4.8% 5.3% 13.8% PYPL
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 1.8% 11.7% 14.6% PYPL
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 20.6x 1.1x 0.5x PYPL
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -52.4% -26.9% -22.6% PYPL
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -40.5%/yr +2.5%/yr -24.6%/yr MELI
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 65.2% 41.0% 43.8% MELI
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 50/100 62/100 69/100 PYPL

Percentile Scorecard

UPSTMELIPYPL

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisUPSTMELIPYPL
Valuation 51 #49 of 99 52 #80 of 166 92 #9 of 99
Growth 76 #23 of 94 78 #34 of 152 62 #36 of 94
Profitability 51 #45 of 90 87 #21 of 152 84 #15 of 90
Financial Health 11 #94 of 105 33 #121 of 179 37 #67 of 105
Shareholder Returns 60 #24 of 59 – 69 #19 of 59
Overall 50 62 69
  • UPST ranked among 109 companies in Fintech
  • MELI ranked among 185 companies in Internet Platforms
  • PYPL ranked among 109 companies in Fintech

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodUPSTMELIPYPLSPY
1 month +4.8%-2.3%+4.2% +0.9%
3 months -9.2%-10.2%-3.1% +5.9%
6 months -20.8%-5.3%+11.0% +8.5%
Year to date -44.8%-16.9%-3.1% +13.3%
1 year -52.4%-26.9%-22.6% +12.4%
3 years +4.8%+39.4%+12.2% +88.1%
3 years, per year +1.6%+11.7%+3.9% +23.5%
5 years -92.5%+13.0%-75.7% +68.2%
5 years, per year -40.5%+2.5%-24.6% +11.0%
10 years —+894.9%+35.4% +263.4%
10 years, per year —+25.8%+3.1% +13.8%

Risk

MeasureUPSTMELIPYPLSPY
Volatility, 1Y 65.2%41.0%43.8% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 68.5%44.7%48.4% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 2.931.031.02 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.80-0.66-0.52 0.98
Max drawdown, 5Y -96.5%-64.2%-83.2% -25.4%
From 52-week high -52.4%-29.1%-22.6% -0.9%
52-week high $50.70$2,360.76$73.02 $779.14
52-week low $22.74$1,546.81$39.08 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleUPSTMELIPYPL
P/E now vs peer median 38.6xmedian 19.6x 45.5xmedian 16.8x 10.2xmedian 19.6x
P/S now vs peer median 1.9xmedian 2.3x 2.4xmedian 1.4x 1.4xmedian 2.3x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 51.8xmedian 17.5x 20.8xmedian 13.9x 7.4xmedian 17.5x
P/FCF now vs peer median -8.1xmedian 15.9x 6.8xmedian 11.4x 7.5xmedian 15.9x
P/B now vs peer median 2.9xmedian 2.0x 10.8xmedian 1.8x 2.4xmedian 2.0x
PEG now vs peer median 1.31median 1.01 1.29median 0.36 0.59median 1.01

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsUPSTMELIPYPL
Revenue $1.25B $35.18B $34.30B
Gross profit $1.03B $15.01B –
Operating income $49.71M $2.91B $5.83B
Net income $60.33M $1.86B $4.73B
Free cash flow -$289.05M $12.41B $6.30B
R&D $304.91M $2.58B $3.28B
EPS (diluted) $0.55 $36.75 $5.51
Cash & equivalents $455.96M $3.65B $7.16B
Total debt $2.00B $10.63B $13.47B
Shares (diluted) 109.72M 50.70M 858.00M
Enterprise value $315.76M $59.65B $7.25B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricUPSTMELIPYPL
P/E 38.6x 45.5x 10.2x
P/FCF -8.1x 6.8x 7.5x
P/Operating cash flow -8.3x 6.1x 6.7x
P/S 1.9x 2.4x 1.4x
P/B 2.9x 10.8x 2.4x
P/Tangible book 2.9x 10.9x 2.4x
EV/EBITDA 51.8x 20.8x 7.4x
EV/EBIT 78.4x 30.9x 8.7x
EV/Revenue 3.1x 2.6x 1.5x
EV/FCF -13.5x 7.2x 8.0x
EV/Operating cash flow -13.7x 6.5x 7.1x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 1.31 1.29 0.59

Growth

14 metrics
MetricUPSTMELIPYPL
Revenue growth (1Y) 48.6% 46.0% 4.4%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 27.9% 41.3% 5.6%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 53.0% 35.8% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) 33.7% 33.9% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 199.7% -2.0% -2.8%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 29.6% 18.1% 8.6%
Net income growth (1Y) 1,050% -9.3% -3.9%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 30.5% 35.0% 7.9%
EPS growth (1Y) 990.2% -9.3% 7.6%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 29.5% 35.3% 17.1%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -335.4% 64.1% 10.4%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -13.2% 45.3% 22.9%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -341.5% 68.0% 13.2%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -13.0% 44.5% 25.5%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricUPSTMELIPYPL
Gross margin 82.5% 42.7% –
EBITDA margin 6.0% 12.3% 19.8%
Operating margin 4.0% 8.3% 17.0%
Pretax margin 4.9% 7.4% 16.6%
Net margin 4.8% 5.3% 13.8%
FCF margin -23.2% 35.3% 18.4%
Operating cash flow margin -22.8% 39.5% 20.7%
Return on equity 7.9% 24.7% 24.1%
Return on assets 2.0% 3.8% 5.8%
Return on invested capital 1.8% 11.7% 14.6%
Return on capital employed – 22.8% 17.0%
Asset turnover 0.4x 0.7x 0.4x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) -4.7x 7.5x 1.5x
Stock comp / revenue 11.7% 0.8% 2.8%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricUPSTMELIPYPL
Debt / assets 63.2% 20.7% 16.5%
Debt / equity 2.5x 1.4x 0.7x
Net debt / EBITDA 20.6x 1.1x 0.5x
Debt / FCF -6.9x 0.9x 2.1x
Liabilities / assets 74.9% 84.7% 76.1%
Equity / assets 25.1% 15.3% 23.9%
Interest coverage 1.2x 13.7x –
Current ratio – 1.1x 1.3x
Quick ratio – 0.2x 0.4x
Cash ratio – 0.2x 0.2x
Altman Z-score – 2.33 1.91

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricUPSTMELIPYPL
Dividend yield – – 1.0%
Net buyback yield 3.5% – 12.7%
Shareholder yield 3.5% 0.0% 13.7%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusUPSTMELIPYPL
Forward P/E 35.0xFY2026 41.3xFY2026 10.2xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $0.69FY2026 $40.52FY2026 $5.55FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -58.4%FY2026 +2.8%FY2026 +4.5%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +191.3% +42.0% -3.1%
Revenue, next fiscal year $1.35BFY2026 $39.34BFY2026 $33.55BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +29.4%FY2026 +36.2%FY2026 +1.1%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +42.2% +45.2% +5.1%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersUPSTMELIPYPL
Held by institutions 60.0% 77.8% 74.2%
Institutions holding 363 1,438 1,379
Change in shares held, QoQ +3.2% +3.5% +0.8%
Institutions buying 196 714 522
Institutions selling 98 525 671
Buyers to sellers 2.00 1.36 0.78

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

UPSTMELIPYPL
UPST 1.00 0.37 0.29
MELI 0.37 1.00 0.26
PYPL 0.29 0.26 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, UPST, MELI and PYPL?

Mercadolibre (MELI) is the largest by market capitalisation: Upstart Holdings (UPST) $2.39B, Mercadolibre (MELI) $83.63B, PayPal Holdings (PYPL) $48.55B.

Which stock is cheaper, UPST, MELI and PYPL?

PayPal Holdings (PYPL) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Upstart Holdings (UPST) 39.6x, Mercadolibre (MELI) 44.9x, PayPal Holdings (PYPL) 10.3x). On next year's consensus earnings, PayPal Holdings (PYPL) is cheapest (Upstart Holdings (UPST) 35.0x, Mercadolibre (MELI) 41.3x, PayPal Holdings (PYPL) 10.2x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Upstart Holdings (UPST) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Upstart Holdings (UPST) +48.6%, Mercadolibre (MELI) +46.0%, PayPal Holdings (PYPL) +4.4%.

Which company is more profitable?

PayPal Holdings (PYPL) has the highest net margin (Upstart Holdings (UPST) 4.8%, Mercadolibre (MELI) 5.3%, PayPal Holdings (PYPL) 13.8%). On return on invested capital, PayPal Holdings (PYPL) leads (Upstart Holdings (UPST) 1.8%, Mercadolibre (MELI) 11.7%, PayPal Holdings (PYPL) 14.6%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year PayPal Holdings (PYPL) returned the most: Upstart Holdings (UPST) -52.4%, Mercadolibre (MELI) -26.9%, PayPal Holdings (PYPL) -22.6%. Over five years, Mercadolibre (MELI) compounded fastest (Upstart Holdings (UPST) -40.5%/yr, Mercadolibre (MELI) +2.5%/yr, PayPal Holdings (PYPL) -24.6%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Mercadolibre (MELI) has been the steadiest (Upstart Holdings (UPST) 65.2%, Mercadolibre (MELI) 41.0%, PayPal Holdings (PYPL) 43.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, UPST, MELI and PYPL?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, PayPal Holdings (PYPL) leads on 7. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.