Shares of One 97 Communications, the company behind the popular digital payments platform Paytm, continued their impressive rally on Monday, December 1. The stock jumped another 3.4% to reach ₹1,365 per share, marking its highest closing level since December 2021. This surge represents the second consecutive session of strong gains, reflecting a significant shift in investor sentiment.
Goldman Sachs Turns Bullish with Major Target Price Hike
The recent upward momentum has been significantly fueled by a highly optimistic report from global brokerage giant Goldman Sachs. Last week, the firm executed a double upgrade on Paytm, shifting its rating from 'Neutral' to 'Buy'. More dramatically, it raised its 12-month target price by a staggering 123% to ₹1,570 per share, from its previous target of ₹705.
Goldman Sachs outlined an even more bullish scenario where the stock could climb to ₹1,870, and a 'blue-sky' projection that sees it soaring to ₹2,320—a potential upside of 79% from current levels. The brokerage argued that the major regulatory challenges that plagued Paytm in recent years are now largely in the past. These hurdles included the 2022 online merchant onboarding ban, the RBI's 2023 curbs on unsecured lending, and the 2024 restrictions on Paytm Payments Bank (PPBL).
The analysts noted that Paytm's market share in UPI and overall payments is already showing signs of recovery. With the recent authorisation as an online payment aggregator, this recovery is expected to accelerate. Consequently, Goldman Sachs forecasts a robust 20–25% annual revenue growth for Paytm over the next 2–3 years and has raised its EBITDA estimates for FY26–30 by at least 45%.
Mutual Funds Ramp Up Holdings to Record High
Institutional confidence in Paytm's turnaround story is visibly growing. Data for the September quarter reveals that domestic mutual funds aggressively increased their exposure to the fintech stock. 40 mutual funds collectively held a record 16.25% stake in One 97 Communications by the end of September 2025, which translates to 10.3 crore shares.
This is a sharp increase from the 13.86% stake they held at the end of the June quarter. Prominent funds leading this accumulation include Motilal Oswal Midcap Fund (5.57% stake), Nippon India Growth Mid Cap Fund (2.11%), and Mirae Asset Large Cap Fund (1.66%). This buying by domestic institutions coincided with foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) and retail investors slightly trimming their holdings to 51.7% and 28.4%, respectively.
A Sustained Rally Built on Improving Fundamentals
The current surge is not an isolated event but part of a sustained recovery. The stock has delivered an 18% return over the past two months and is on track for its third consecutive year of positive returns. In an even more striking performance, the share price has finished in positive territory in seven of the last eight months, marking its strongest one-way rally since its market debut in November 2021. From the start of this rally, the stock has generated a phenomenal 90% return for investors.
Market experts attribute this sustained performance to the gradual easing of regulatory headwinds, which has improved earnings visibility for the company. Paytm's plans to launch new financial products and services have further strengthened optimism on Dalal Street. The combination of improving quarterly earnings and successive target price upgrades from brokerages has created a powerful tailwind for the stock, positioning it for a potential re-rating as it moves past its regulatory challenges.
