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Affirm Unlocks BNPL Services for Apple Pay Users, Investors Rejoice

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Affirm Holdings, Inc. (AFRM - Free Report) recently announced that its payment services are now available to Apple Pay users in the United States on the iPhone and iPad. Investors have been eagerly waiting for this news since June. This integration will allow eligible U.S. users to split their purchases into biweekly or monthly payments, leveraging Affirm's buy now, pay later (BNPL) services.

This move provides Apple Pay users the ability to check out online or in-app with flexible payment plans, including 0% APR options for some purchases. Affirm's services will initially be available to users with devices running iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 or later. The move enhances AFRM's reach by offering flexibility while maintaining the security and privacy features of Apple Pay.

The rollout of its partnership with Apple, done in a controlled manner to reduce risks, is expected to boost AFRM’s addressable market size. Impacts on its profits from this move are expected to be gradual.

The BNPL sector is experiencing rapid growth, and Affirm is quickly expanding its market share to capitalize on this trend. It has already crossed the 300,000 active merchant milestone and is expected to continue the momentum in the coming days.

Unlocking the repeat customer transaction barrier is expected to drive Affirm's transaction growth, helping it meet its goals. Affirm aims to achieve profitability in operating income on a GAAP basis by the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025, with transaction momentum playing a key role in reaching this target. It expects a GMV of more than $33.5 billion in fiscal 2025, up from $26.6 billion in fiscal 2024. The adjusted operating margin is estimated to be higher than 18.4%, up from 16% in fiscal 2024. 

AFRM’s Stock Price Performance

AFRM shares have rallied 44.3% in the past three months, outperforming the industry average of 7.6%.

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Affirm’s Zacks Rank & Other Key Picks

AFRM currently has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Investors can look at some other top-ranked stocks from the broader Business Services space like Fidelity National Information Services, Inc. (FIS - Free Report) , Paysign, Inc. (PAYS - Free Report) and Remitly Global, Inc. (RELY - Free Report) .While Fidelity National currently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Paysign and Remitly Global each carry a Zacks Rank #2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Fidelity National’s current-year earnings indicates a 50.7% year-over-year jump. FIS beat earnings estimates in two of the trailing four quarters and missed twice. The consensus estimate for current-year revenues is pegged at $10.2 billion.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Paysign’s current-year bottom line indicates 75% year-over-year growth. The consensus estimate for PAYS’ current-year top line is pegged at $58 million, suggesting 22.6% year-over-year growth.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Remitly Global’s current-year earnings indicates a 53.9% year-over-year improvement. RELY beat earnings estimates in two of the trailing four quarters and missed twice, with an average surprise of 8%. The consensus estimate for current-year revenues calls for 31.8% year-over-year growth.

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