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Side-by-side financial comparison of IBM (IBM) and PayPal (PYPL). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
IBM is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($15.9B vs $8.7B, roughly 1.8× PayPal). PayPal runs the higher net margin — 16.6% vs 7.6%, a 8.9% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, IBM posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (9.5% vs 3.7%). IBM produced more free cash flow last quarter ($2.2B vs $2.2B). Over the past eight quarters, PayPal's revenue compounded faster (6.2% CAGR vs 0.5%).
International Business Machines Corporation, doing business as IBM, is an American multinational technology company headquartered in Armonk, New York, and present in over 175 countries. It is a publicly traded company and one of the 30 companies in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. IBM is the largest industrial research organization in the world, with 19 research facilities across a dozen countries; for 29 consecutive years, from 1993 to 2021, it held the record for most annual U.S.
PayPalPYPLEarnings & Financial Report
PayPal Holdings, Inc. is an American multinational financial technology company operating an online payments system in the majority of countries that support online money transfers; it serves as an electronic alternative to traditional paper methods such as checks and money orders. The company operates as a payment processor for online vendors, auction sites and many other commercial and company users.
IBM vs PYPL — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q1 FY2026 vs Q4 FY2025
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $15.9B | $8.7B |
| Net Profit | $1.2B | $1.4B |
| Gross Margin | 56.2% | — |
| Operating Margin | — | 17.4% |
| Net Margin | 7.6% | 16.6% |
| Revenue YoY | 9.5% | 3.7% |
| Net Profit YoY | 15.3% | 28.2% |
| EPS (diluted) | $1.28 | $1.53 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q1 26 | $15.9B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $19.7B | $8.7B | ||
| Q3 25 | $16.3B | $8.4B | ||
| Q2 25 | $17.0B | $8.3B | ||
| Q1 25 | $14.5B | $7.8B | ||
| Q4 24 | $17.6B | $8.4B | ||
| Q3 24 | $15.0B | $7.8B | ||
| Q2 24 | $15.8B | $7.9B |
| Q1 26 | $1.2B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $5.6B | $1.4B | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.7B | $1.2B | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.2B | $1.3B | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.1B | $1.3B | ||
| Q4 24 | $2.9B | $1.1B | ||
| Q3 24 | $-330.0M | $1.0B | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.8B | $1.1B |
| Q1 26 | 56.2% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 60.6% | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 57.3% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 58.8% | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 55.2% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 59.5% | — | ||
| Q3 24 | 56.3% | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 56.8% | — |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 21.0% | 17.4% | ||
| Q3 25 | 14.9% | 18.1% | ||
| Q2 25 | 15.3% | 18.1% | ||
| Q1 25 | 8.0% | 19.6% | ||
| Q4 24 | 18.8% | 17.2% | ||
| Q3 24 | -5.4% | 17.7% | ||
| Q2 24 | 14.1% | 16.8% |
| Q1 26 | 7.6% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 28.4% | 16.6% | ||
| Q3 25 | 10.7% | 14.8% | ||
| Q2 25 | 12.9% | 15.2% | ||
| Q1 25 | 7.3% | 16.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | 16.6% | 13.4% | ||
| Q3 24 | -2.2% | 12.9% | ||
| Q2 24 | 11.6% | 14.3% |
| Q1 26 | $1.28 | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $5.90 | $1.53 | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.84 | $1.30 | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.31 | $1.29 | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.12 | $1.29 | ||
| Q4 24 | $3.11 | $1.09 | ||
| Q3 24 | $-0.36 | $0.99 | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.96 | $1.08 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $10.8B | $10.4B |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $66.4B | — |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $33.1B | $20.3B |
| Total Assets | $156.2B | $80.2B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | 2.01× | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | $10.8B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $13.6B | $10.4B | ||
| Q3 25 | $11.6B | $10.8B | ||
| Q2 25 | $11.9B | $10.0B | ||
| Q1 25 | $11.0B | $11.2B | ||
| Q4 24 | $13.9B | $10.8B | ||
| Q3 24 | $13.2B | $11.9B | ||
| Q2 24 | $12.2B | $13.6B |
| Q1 26 | $66.4B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $54.8B | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $55.2B | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $55.2B | — | ||
| Q1 25 | $56.4B | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $49.9B | — | ||
| Q3 24 | $53.0B | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $52.9B | — |
| Q1 26 | $33.1B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $32.6B | $20.3B | ||
| Q3 25 | $27.9B | $20.2B | ||
| Q2 25 | $27.5B | $20.2B | ||
| Q1 25 | $26.9B | $20.3B | ||
| Q4 24 | $27.3B | $20.4B | ||
| Q3 24 | $24.4B | $20.2B | ||
| Q2 24 | $24.0B | $20.6B |
| Q1 26 | $156.2B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $151.9B | $80.2B | ||
| Q3 25 | $146.3B | $79.8B | ||
| Q2 25 | $148.6B | $79.8B | ||
| Q1 25 | $145.7B | $81.3B | ||
| Q4 24 | $137.2B | $81.6B | ||
| Q3 24 | $134.3B | $83.5B | ||
| Q2 24 | $133.8B | $84.0B |
| Q1 26 | 2.01× | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 1.68× | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.98× | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 2.01× | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 2.10× | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.83× | — | ||
| Q3 24 | 2.17× | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 2.20× | — |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | $5.2B | $2.4B |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $2.2B | $2.2B |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | 13.9% | 25.2% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 2.4% | 2.2% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | 4.25× | 1.66× |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $10.2B | $5.6B |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | $5.2B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $4.0B | $2.4B | ||
| Q3 25 | $3.1B | $2.0B | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.7B | $898.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $4.4B | $1.2B | ||
| Q4 24 | $4.3B | $2.4B | ||
| Q3 24 | $2.9B | $1.6B | ||
| Q2 24 | $2.1B | $1.5B |
| Q1 26 | $2.2B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $3.7B | $2.2B | ||
| Q3 25 | $2.8B | $1.7B | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.5B | $692.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $4.1B | $964.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $4.0B | $2.2B | ||
| Q3 24 | $2.6B | $1.4B | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.8B | $1.4B |
| Q1 26 | 13.9% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 18.6% | 25.2% | ||
| Q3 25 | 17.3% | 20.4% | ||
| Q2 25 | 8.8% | 8.3% | ||
| Q1 25 | 28.4% | 12.4% | ||
| Q4 24 | 22.9% | 26.2% | ||
| Q3 24 | 17.3% | 18.4% | ||
| Q2 24 | 11.7% | 17.3% |
| Q1 26 | 2.4% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 1.9% | 2.2% | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.6% | 3.0% | ||
| Q2 25 | 1.2% | 2.5% | ||
| Q1 25 | 1.7% | 2.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.7% | 2.4% | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.9% | 2.2% | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.4% | 2.0% |
| Q1 26 | 4.25× | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 0.72× | 1.66× | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.77× | 1.58× | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.78× | 0.71× | ||
| Q1 25 | 4.14× | 0.90× | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.49× | 2.14× | ||
| Q3 24 | — | 1.60× | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.13× | 1.35× |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
IBM
| Software | $7.1B | 44% |
| Consulting | $5.3B | 33% |
| Infrastructure | $3.3B | 21% |
| Financing | $220.0M | 1% |
PYPL
| US | $4.9B | 57% |
| Non Us | $3.7B | 43% |
