PayPal Is 83% Below Its High. Here's What Would Send the Stock Back There.

PayPal stock has plummeted 83% from its July 2021 peak of $305.13, despite solid fundamentals including 56% growth in payment volume and 64% growth in free cash flow over five years. The main concern is weakness in the company's branded checkout solution, which grew only 2% in recent quarters, suggesting loss of market share to competitors like Apple Pay and potential sensitivity to consumer discretionary spending. For the stock to recover, the branded checkout segment must accelerate, though the author remains skeptical of a full recovery to previous highs.

10/02/2026, 5:30 AM • The Motley Fool

Warren Buffett's Record: $1,000 Became About $61 Million. Can Greg Abel Keep Compounding It?

Warren Buffett stepped down as Berkshire Hathaway chairman in September 2026, ending an era of exceptional returns (6,099,294% since 1965). New CEO Greg Abel faces the challenge of maintaining growth, but Berkshire's massive $1.1 trillion size makes repeating historical 19.7% annual returns virtually impossible. The company has underperformed the S&P 500 over the past decade and is sitting on $365.6 billion in cash while making strategic portfolio shifts.

09/30/2026, 7:30 PM • The Motley Fool

Binance Just Invested $100 Million in Circle Internet Group. Here's What It Really Means

Binance invested $100 million in Circle Internet Group and expanded their partnership for five years to promote USDC, a digital dollar stablecoin. The deal is primarily about distribution—Binance will leverage its massive platform to increase USDC adoption globally, while Circle provides infrastructure support. Circle will pay Binance incentive fees based on USDC holdings. This partnership aims to make USDC part of global financial infrastructure, particularly targeting emerging markets for cross-border payments.

09/29/2026, 5:15 AM • The Motley Fool

D-Wave Quantum vs. QuantumScape: Which Moonshot Tech Stock Is a Better Buy in 2026?

The article compares two early-stage quantum technology companies: D-Wave Quantum, which has commercial customers and $24.6M in revenue but is burning cash rapidly with a -1,444% net margin, and QuantumScape, a pre-revenue solid-state battery developer with a stronger cash cushion and clearer path to commercialization. The author recommends QuantumScape as the better speculative bet due to its financial runway, despite both being high-risk moonshot investments years from profitability.

09/26/2026, 10:09 AM • The Motley Fool

Should Investors Buy Visa Instead of Mastercard?

An analysis comparing Visa and Mastercard, two of the world's most profitable payment processing companies. The article examines which stock might be the better investment choice, with the author noting that the conclusion may be surprising to investors.

09/25/2026, 8:27 PM • The Motley Fool

The Investing Playbook for Retirees Who Can't Afford to Lose

The article provides a strategic framework for retirees on fixed incomes to protect their savings while managing inflation risk. It recommends a three-bucket approach: maintaining 12-24 months of expenses in cash/short-term fixed income, holding inflation-beating investments with dividend stocks, and allocating remaining funds to long-term growth stocks. The strategy emphasizes identifying essential expenses, calculating guaranteed income gaps, and using bond ladders and high-yield savings accounts to avoid forced asset sales during market downturns.

09/21/2026, 11:15 AM • The Motley Fool

Greg Abel Has 75% of Berkshire Hathaway's Portfolio Invested in Just 8 Stocks. Is the 1 That's Lagging Behind the S&P 500 the Best Buy Now?

Under new CEO Greg Abel, Berkshire Hathaway has concentrated 75% of its $365.2 billion equity portfolio into 8 stocks. American Express is the only one lagging the S&P 500 over the past year due to margin compression from high cardholder rewards and marketing expenses. Despite these headwinds, the article argues American Express offers compelling value at 19.7x trailing earnings for long-term investors who believe in its business model.

09/17/2026, 6:30 AM • The Motley Fool

What Would It Actually Take to Move Visa's Take Rate?

Visa's take rate—the percentage of revenue collected from gross payment volume—is less than 0.3%, which appears low but is intentional given its open-loop business model where it acts as a transaction facilitator rather than a credit provider. While the company could theoretically increase its take rate through higher processing fees, cross-border commerce expansion, or reduced client incentives, analyst Eric Volkman argues the current model works brilliantly and requires only minor tweaks, as aggressive moves could alienate merchants, issuers, and cardholders in a competitive market.

09/17/2026, 5:30 AM • The Motley Fool

Berkshire Hathaway Has Nearly 14% of Its $359 Billion Portfolio Invested in This Winning Stock That's Doubled in 5 Years

American Express is Berkshire Hathaway's second-largest holding, representing nearly 14% of its $359 billion portfolio. The stock has doubled over the past five years and currently trades at a P/E ratio of 19.5, which analysts consider a compelling entry point. The company benefits from a strong economic moat, premium brand positioning targeting affluent customers, and tailwinds from the cashless economy, with management projecting 10% annual revenue growth and mid-teens earnings per share growth.

09/13/2026, 11:02 AM • The Motley Fool

X Pay is live on mainnet

X Pay has launched a payment gateway that enables any API or software to charge for individual HTTP requests and settle in USDC on Base mainnet. The service eliminates traditional payment barriers like accounts, API keys, and subscriptions by leveraging the x402 standard and stablecoins, allowing economically viable micropayments for the first time. The x402 standard, contributed by Coinbase and managed by the Linux Foundation, has already processed over 169 million payments across 590,000 buyers and 100,000 sellers.

09/11/2026, 10:55 AM • GlobeNewswire

Paycode Appoints Colin Digby as Chief Revenue Officer

Paycode announced the appointment of Colin Digby as Chief Revenue Officer. Digby brings extensive experience from major financial institutions including Mastercard, Barclays, Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan, and Citibank. He will lead Paycode's global revenue strategy and expand partnerships to scale the company's payments and digital identity technology across underserved markets in Africa and beyond.

09/04/2026, 2:41 AM • GlobeNewswire

Here's What $1,000 in Visa Stock at Its IPO Would Be Worth Today

A $1,000 investment in Visa stock at its 2008 IPO would be worth approximately $440,000 today, including reinvested dividends. Visa's exceptional business model, dominant market position as the world's largest credit card network, asset-light operations, and consistent dividend growth over 18 years demonstrate its reliability as a long-term investment that benefits from economic expansion.

09/02/2026, 9:24 AM • The Motley Fool

Bill Ackman Just Bought Visa, Mastercard, and S&P Global Stock. Each One Collects a Toll on Somebody Else's Sale.

Bill Ackman's Pershing Square hedge fund made three major new investments of approximately $1.1 billion each in Visa, Mastercard, and S&P Global during Q2 2026. These three positions combined represent about 17% of the fund's $19.5 billion U.S. stock portfolio. The common thread among these companies is their business model of collecting fees on transactions they don't originate, fund, or take risk on. All three are trading at premium valuations, reflecting their durable, recession-resistant revenue streams.

08/28/2026, 8:34 PM • The Motley Fool

Is Mastercard an Undervalued Stock to Buy?

Mastercard is presented as an excellent long-term investment option. The article notes that billionaire investor Bill Ackman recently purchased Mastercard stock alongside Visa and S&P Global. However, innovation from competitors remains identified as the company's biggest threat.

08/28/2026, 8:07 PM • The Motley Fool

For Investors in Their 30s, Here's 1 Glorious Growth ETF to Buy Hand Over Fist and Hold Forever

The Vanguard Morningstar Mega Cap Growth ETF (MGK) is recommended for investors in their 30s seeking long-term growth. With 72% exposure to technology stocks and top holdings in Nvidia, Apple, and Microsoft, the ETF has delivered 13.6% compound annual returns since 2007, outperforming the S&P 500's 10.9%. A $30,000 investment could yield approximately $700,000 more at retirement compared to conservative alternatives, though diversification is advised.

08/25/2026, 7:30 AM • The Motley Fool