Klarna stock has had a brutal year. The buy now, pay later company that listed in New York at $40 a share in September 2025 closed below $13 on Thursday, near its lowest level since going public. Then, on Friday, the shares jumped 8.6% after Klarna named a Robinhood executive as its next chief financial officer, just four days before a third-quarter earnings report that could set the tone for the stock heading into Black Friday.
Quick answer: Klarna (NYSE: KLAR) closed at $13.80 on Friday, 13 November 2026, up $1.09 or 8.58%, on roughly double its usual trading volume. The move followed Klarna’s announcement that Chris Koegel, Robinhood’s head of corporate finance and investor relations, will become CFO on 1 January 2027, replacing Niclas Neglén, who is leaving for Adyen. Klarna reports Q3 results before the market opens on Tuesday, 17 November, and has guided for revenue of $940 million to $980 million.
Why Klarna stock jumped on Friday
Klarna announced the appointment on Thursday, 12 November, in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. The board has approved Koegel, but his start date of 1 January 2027 is still subject to regulatory approval. Niclas Neglén, who has been Klarna’s CFO for six years, will stay in the role until the end of December.
Shares fell on Thursday, closing at $12.71, but buyers piled in on Friday. The stock opened at $12.78, touched $13.82 and closed at $13.80, according to Yahoo Finance data. About 12.5 million shares changed hands, close to twice the average daily volume of around 6.5 million.
Two things seem to have driven the move. First, the CFO search, which Klarna started in August, is now over, removing one source of uncertainty. Second, traders were positioning ahead of Tuesday’s earnings, according to Insider Monkey. When a stock has fallen as far as Klarna’s has, even modestly good news can trigger a sharp bounce.
Who is Chris Koegel?
Koegel is currently vice president and head of corporate finance and investor relations at Robinhood Markets, which he joined in 2022. Before that he ran investor relations at LPL Financial from 2015 to 2022, after 13 years at the consulting firm Bain & Company.
His time at Robinhood is the headline. Klarna noted that Robinhood’s market value grew from under $10 billion to more than $100 billion during his tenure. FinanceFeeds pointed out that this reflects Robinhood’s overall business rather than one executive’s work, but it does show that Koegel has helped a consumer fintech win back Wall Street’s trust after a rocky start as a public company. That is exactly the job Klarna needs done.
CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski said Koegel’s experience at a US-listed consumer fintech would be “invaluable” for the company’s next phase. Klarna also named Brandon Gracey as head of North America, focused on growing its merchant and partner business in the region, American Banker reported.
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Company | Klarna Group plc (NYSE: KLAR) |
| Friday close (13 Nov 2026) | $13.80, up $1.09 (+8.58%) |
| Previous close | $12.71 |
| Market value | About $5.2 billion |
| 52-week range | $12.06 to $35.35 |
| IPO price (Sept 2025) | $40.00 |
| New CFO | Chris Koegel, from Robinhood, starting 1 Jan 2027 |
| Outgoing CFO | Niclas Neglén, joining Adyen as CFO on 1 Feb 2027 |
| Next earnings | Tuesday 17 Nov, before US market open; webcast 8:30am ET (7:00pm IST) |
How Klarna stock got here: from $40 IPO to under $14
Klarna priced its initial public offering at $40 a share on 9 September 2025, above its planned range of $35 to $37, and began trading on the New York Stock Exchange the next day. Shares opened at $52 and closed their first session at $45.82. It was one of the biggest listings of 2025.
It has been mostly downhill since. The stock is down about 52% so far in 2026 and roughly 60% over the past 12 months, according to Finviz data. The sharpest blow came on 18 August 2026, when Klarna reported strong second-quarter numbers but cut its full-year outlook. The stock fell about 19% that day, FinanceFeeds reported.
That Q2 report was actually solid on its own terms:
- Gross merchandise volume (GMV) of $36.6 billion, up 18% year on year
- Revenue of $1.042 billion, up 27%
- Transaction margin dollars of $446 million, up 42%
- Adjusted operating income of $91 million and net income of $9 million
- 120 million active consumers and 6.5 million active Klarna Card users
The problem was the outlook. Klarna lowered its 2026 revenue guidance to $4.08 billion to $4.16 billion and cut its GMV forecast to $149 billion to $151 billion, from more than $155 billion, while raising its forecast for transaction margin dollars, the profit measure it prefers. It blamed currency moves, weaker retail spending in Germany and accounting changes on some financing products. In the same update, Klarna said Neglén and chief marketing officer David Sandström would leave in early 2027.
What to watch when Klarna reports on November 17
Klarna will publish its Q3 2026 results on its investor relations site before the US market opens on Tuesday, 17 November, with a webcast at 8:30am ET. Here is what the company has guided and what Wall Street expects:
| Metric | Klarna Q3 guidance | Q3 2025 (year ago) |
|---|---|---|
| GMV | $35bn to $36bn | $32.7bn |
| Revenue | $940m to $980m | $903m |
| Analyst revenue estimate | About $964m | — |
| Analyst EPS estimate | Loss of $0.13 per share | Loss of $0.25 per share |
Analyst estimates as compiled by Benzinga; guidance and prior-year figures via Insider Monkey and Klarna’s August update.
Five things that will move the stock
- Whether Klarna hits its own numbers. Q3 guidance is below the Q2 actuals, so investors will want to see revenue at or above the middle of the $940 million to $980 million range.
- The full-year outlook. Another cut to the $4.08 billion to $4.16 billion revenue range would hurt; holding it steady would ease worries.
- Credit quality. Klarna is shifting more toward longer-term instalment loans. In Q2 its provisions were low at 0.52% of GMV. Any rise in losses will get attention, since American Banker noted investors have questioned whether Klarna can balance loss provisions with growth.
- The holiday quarter. Q4 includes Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Klarna’s most important shopping weeks. Comments on early holiday demand could matter more than the Q3 numbers themselves.
- The US bank charter. In July 2026 Klarna applied to set up Klarna Bank USA, a Utah-chartered, FDIC-insured bank. Approval would let it take deposits and lend directly, but it would also bring new capital requirements. Any update on timing will be watched.
These will also be Klarna’s first results to cover a period in which buy now, pay later lending in the UK was regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, according to industry outlet Hello Partner.
If you are planning to use pay-later services this season, our guide to whether Black Friday or Cyber Monday has better deals is a useful read, and it is worth staying alert to the Black Friday scams that target online shoppers.
What analysts think
Wall Street is cautious rather than negative. MarketBeat’s tally shows one Strong Buy, seven Buy, eleven Hold and one Sell rating, for a consensus of Hold and an average price target of about $22.44. Some brokers have trimmed expectations: TD Cowen cut its target from $18 to $16 with a Hold rating on 6 October, and Wolfe Research downgraded the stock to Peer Perform in August. Even the lower targets sit above Friday’s close, but those targets assume Klarna stops disappointing on guidance.
The bull case is that Klarna is growing transaction profits quickly, has a huge user base and trades at a fraction of its IPO valuation. The bear case is that growth is slowing, credit risk is rising as the loan book changes shape, and leadership is in transition just as the company tries to become a bank.
Disclaimer: This article is for information only and is not financial advice. Stock prices can move sharply around earnings, and past performance does not guarantee future results. Do your own research or speak to a qualified financial adviser before investing.
Frequently asked questions
Why did Klarna stock go up today?
Klarna shares rose 8.58% to $13.80 on Friday, 13 November 2026, after the company named Robinhood executive Chris Koegel as its next CFO and as investors positioned ahead of its 17 November earnings report.
Who is Klarna’s new CFO?
Chris Koegel, currently vice president and head of corporate finance and investor relations at Robinhood. He takes over on 1 January 2027, subject to regulatory approval, succeeding Niclas Neglén.
When is Klarna’s next earnings report?
Klarna reports Q3 2026 results on Tuesday, 17 November 2026, before the US market opens, with a webcast at 8:30am ET (7:00pm IST).
What was Klarna’s IPO price?
Klarna priced its IPO at $40 per share in September 2025. The stock closed its first trading day, 10 September 2025, at $45.82.
Is Klarna stock a buy?
Analysts are split. The consensus compiled by MarketBeat is Hold, with an average target around $22. Whether it suits you depends on your goals and risk tolerance, so treat this as information, not a recommendation.
Sources: Klarna (SEC filing and Q2 2026 results), Yahoo Finance, Finviz, Benzinga, Insider Monkey, FinanceFeeds, American Banker, Finextra, MarketBeat, Hello Partner, IPOScoop, Google Trends.
