{"id":64942,"date":"2026-07-17T06:08:13","date_gmt":"2026-07-17T10:08:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/market-pulse-analyst-shifts-at-netflix-and-paypal-entain-layoffs-and-air-chinas-12-4b-expansion\/64942\/"},"modified":"2026-07-17T06:08:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T10:08:13","slug":"market-pulse-analyst-shifts-at-netflix-and-paypal-entain-layoffs-and-air-chinas-12-4b-expansion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/market-pulse-analyst-shifts-at-netflix-and-paypal-entain-layoffs-and-air-chinas-12-4b-expansion\/64942\/","title":{"rendered":"Market Pulse: Analyst Shifts at Netflix and PayPal, Entain Layoffs, and Air China\u2019s $12.4B Expansion"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Air China<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/601111\">601111<\/a>) and its subsidiary Shenzhen Airlines have committed to a massive <strong>$12.4 billion<\/strong> order for <strong>15 Airbus A350-900<\/strong> aircraft to modernize their long-haul fleets.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Entain<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/ENT\">ENT<\/a>) is slashing <strong>500 jobs<\/strong>, roughly <strong>2%<\/strong> of its global workforce, as it struggles with a <strong>\u00a3200 million<\/strong> annual cost increase driven by rising UK gambling taxes.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Bernstein<\/strong> analysts issued divergent outlooks for tech giants, cutting the price target for <strong>Netflix<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/NFLX\">NFLX<\/a>) to <strong>$95<\/strong> while raising <strong>PayPal<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/PYPL\">PYPL<\/a>) to <strong>$55<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>PayPal<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/PYPL\">PYPL<\/a>) shares surged following news of a potential <strong>$53 billion<\/strong> acquisition bid from <strong>Stripe<\/strong> and <strong>Advent International<\/strong>, signaling a major consolidation in the fintech sector.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Air China Bolsters Fleet with $12.4 Billion Airbus Order<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Air China<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/601111\">601111<\/a>) has announced a significant expansion of its widebody fleet, placing an order for <strong>15 Airbus A350-900<\/strong> aircraft. The total catalogue price for the deal is estimated at <strong>$12.4 billion<\/strong>, though airlines typically receive substantial discounts on such large-scale orders.<\/p>\n<p>This move is part of a broader strategy by Chinese carriers to resume large-scale fleet expansion as international travel demand rebounds. The <strong>A350-900<\/strong> is expected to improve fuel efficiency by up to <strong>25%<\/strong> compared to older models, helping the airline manage rising operational costs and meet stricter environmental regulations.<\/p>\n<h2>Entain Cuts 500 Jobs Amid UK Tax Hikes and Competition<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Entain<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/ENT\">ENT<\/a>), the parent company of Ladbrokes and Coral, is laying off <strong>500 employees<\/strong> to mitigate the financial impact of a &quot;dramatic&quot; increase in UK gambling duties. The company expects these tax changes to add approximately <strong>\u00a3200 million<\/strong> ($269 million) to its annual costs.<\/p>\n<p>Beyond tax pressures, the firm cited increased competition from <strong>prediction markets<\/strong> and stricter regulatory environments as primary drivers for the restructuring. The layoffs will primarily affect corporate, product, and technology teams as the company seeks to offset more than <strong>50%<\/strong> of the new tax burden through efficiency measures.<\/p>\n<h2>Bernstein Adjusts Targets for Netflix and PayPal<\/h2>\n<p>Analysts at <strong>Bernstein<\/strong> have revised their expectations for two major tech players, reflecting shifting sentiment in the streaming and fintech industries. The firm cut its price target for <strong>Netflix<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/NFLX\">NFLX<\/a>) from <strong>$100 to $95<\/strong>, citing concerns over subscriber growth pressure and revenue visibility in the second half of 2026.<\/p>\n<p>Conversely, <strong>Bernstein<\/strong> raised its target for <strong>PayPal<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/PYPL\">PYPL<\/a>) from <strong>$45 to $55<\/strong>. This optimism follows reports that <strong>Stripe<\/strong> and <strong>Advent International<\/strong> have proposed a <strong>$53 billion<\/strong> acquisition of the payments giant. The potential deal has sparked a rally in <strong>PayPal<\/strong> (<a href=\"\/stock\/PYPL\">PYPL<\/a>) shares, with investors weighing the <strong>$60.50 per share<\/strong> bid against the company&#39;s standalone fair value.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Key Takeaways Air China (601111) and its subsidiary Shenzhen Airlines have committed to a massive $12.4 billion order for 15 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":50383,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center 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