Walmart (NYSE.) has announced yesterday that John Rainey (NASDAQ.) will be joining them as CFO.

Rainey serves as PayPal’s head of finances and is expected to take on his role at Walmart on June 6, succeeding Bret Biggs, who announced his decision to step down in November.

Biggs will step down from his duty in June, though he will remain the company’s advisor through January 31.

Rainey “has a proven track record of leading change at scale in customer service organizations innovating in their fields,” said Walmart CEO Doug McMillon.

Rainey worked as United Airlines’ CFO before joining PayPal.

“I’m confident that John’s mix of financial and digital acumen, coupled with his experience leading finance in complex, highly competitive industries, will help us deliver for our customers and shareholders as we continue to transform our company,” McMillon said.

Walmart will continue to seek out new revenue-generating opportunities like its plans to grow its third party marketplace and to upgrade its advertising company.

Retail giant also supported and created a new financial technology startup led by Goldman Sachs former bankers.

Morgan Stanley analyst Simeon Gutman commented that Rainey is a “high quality hire.”

“Positives: strong reputation, fintech/tech background, established CFO track record at two large public companies. Negatives: lack of direct Retail experience and omni-channel/store operational expertise,” Gutman said in a client note.

On the other hand, Gutman’s colleague and PYPL analyst at Morgan Stanley (NYSE:), James Faucette, says that Rainey’s exit is a “mixed update.”

“John Rainey’s departure may be perceived as negative signaling, and could potentially refresh fears around the company’s ability to sustain above market growth and reach financial targets, which include rapidly accelerating revenue growth throughout 2022 and a medium-term outlook for ~20% revenue growth and ~22% EPS growth. At the same time, there may be some relief among investors as there had been speculation around a change in senior leadership given recent earnings misses and related selloffs of PayPal’s stock,” Faucette wrote in a memo.

Jason Kupferberg, Bank of America analyst is less negative than Faucette.

“Notably, PYPL did not reiterate guidance in today’s announcement, which adds uncertainty heading into earnings on 4/27. Though valuation remains near all-time lows, we see limited visibility on PYPL’s 2H ramp & normalized earnings power,” Kupferberg wrote in a memo.

The analyst reiterated a Neutral rating as he believes PYPL shares will continue to trade in a range-bound mode until investors can better understand the company’s new strategy.

Pre-open Wednesday saw a 3% drop in the stock price of PayPal.

By Senad Karaahmetovic