Wall Street Analysts: Three Stocks Poised to Benefit from Holiday Shopping Frenzy Performance

The National Retail Foundation (NRF) predicts that retail sales during Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s holidays in 2025 will surpass $1 trillion, representing a 4.2% increase from $976 billion in 2024. Behind this astonishing consumer spending, the banking and digital payments industries have become the main focus of Wall Street, especially as AI-driven fintech rapidly evolves and digital payments become the norm. The holiday season is a critical time to observe the payments industry.

Michael William Beer, Head of Crypto and Advertising at the marketing platform Whop, pointed out that holidays are typically a boom period for “BNPL” (Buy Now Pay Later) and digital payments, with consumers’ festive shopping power enhanced by BNPL. However, he also cautions that surging traffic is a major test for payment systems—whether platforms can remain stable under high load is crucial to overall performance.

For payment providers, an even bigger challenge comes from customer service. Scott Bialek, co-founder of Dallas financial firm Hurst Lending, noted that as transaction volumes soar, issues like payment failures, duplicate charges, and refund inquiries multiply several times over. A company’s ability to handle these in real time is the harshest stress test of the holiday season.

Nikita Zelezkins, COO of global online payment company Noda, adds that global retail sales in November and December account for about 15% to 20% of the annual total, making this a key battleground for all payment providers. He cited the example of digital payments company Adyen, which processed as much as $43 billion in transactions over Black Friday and Cyber Monday this year, a 27% year-over-year increase. He also observed a simultaneous rise in transaction volumes from travel and e-commerce clients.

Zelezkins believes that while online shopping penetration varies by country—about 40% in the UK, 30% in the US, and 19% in Germany—the common trend is steady growth in both online and offline spending. For payment providers, the holiday season is like a stress test; those who can respond robustly often turn short-term busyness into long-term growth.

Against this backdrop, which stocks are most likely to benefit from the $1 trillion holiday opportunity? The following three companies have been highlighted by several financial experts as the most promising payment stocks this holiday season. For market observation only; not investment advice.

Visa (NYSE: V)

Visa is stable, resilient, and has a very strong market foundation. Although Visa’s stock price has only risen by 3.5% this year—not particularly impressive—its business model is like a “digital toll highway,” generating revenue from every card transaction without the risk of lending, so it faces less pressure than banks. Inflation may actually benefit Visa, as higher prices mean higher transaction fees. JPMorgan analysts point out that Visa is accelerating its blockchain payments and new financial infrastructure, but what really attracts investors is its ability to reliably process billions of transactions daily and its irreplaceable market position.

PayPal (NASDAQ: PYPL)

The online shopping season has always strongly boosted payment and BNPL platforms, and PayPal is one of the most prominent beneficiaries. Michael Foote, founder of Quote Goat and former HSBC executive, notes that PayPal has a mature payment ecosystem and a strong BNPL product line, with transaction volumes rising significantly during holiday periods, effectively capitalizing on increased “buy now, pay later” demand. Although PayPal’s stock price fell by more than 27% in 2025, raising some market concerns about its growth, experts believe this is more of a short-term fluctuation than a long-term trend. PayPal is actively expanding agency services, strengthening enterprise partnerships, and forming technology alliances with giants like OpenAI and Google. Its 434 million active users and the Venmo ecosystem add to its long-term competitiveness. The general market expectation is that if the company succeeds in optimizing costs and revitalizing its products over the next two years, this year’s stock price dip will offer a rare entry opportunity for long-term investors.

Block (NYSE: XYZ)

Formerly known as Square, Block has actively rebranded in recent years, announcing a three-year growth plan and a $5 billion stock buyback to boost market confidence. The company estimates revenue will surpass $32.8 billion by 2028, laying out a long-term growth blueprint for investors. Block owns core products such as Cash App and Square, covering merchant POS, e-wallets, peer-to-peer payments, and BNPL, making it one of the most diversified fintech companies. Foote believes this multi-pronged approach positions Block to benefit more during holiday spending peaks. The stock is currently around $62, and many analysts see it as an undervalued growth stock. With shareholder returns, product expansion, and long-term payment market trends advancing together, Block is expected to stand out in the years ahead.

This article, Wall Street Analysts: Three Stocks Poised to Benefit from the Holiday Shopping Frenzy, first appeared on Chain News ABMedia.