Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) Stock Rated "Buy" in New Coverage at Bank of America

Key Points

• Bank of America initiated coverage of Global Payments with a “buy” rating and a $114 price target, implying approximately 37% upside from the reported share price.
• Analyst sentiment is mixed: 12 analysts rate the stock Buy, 17 Hold, and three Sell, resulting in a consensus Hold rating and an average price target of $95.86.
• Global Payments shares rose 2.5% to $82.95. The company recently exceeded quarterly EPS estimates, reported 68.6% year-over-year revenue growth, and institutional investors own nearly 90% of its stock.

Equities researchers at Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Global Payments (NYSE:GPN - Get Free Report) in a research note issued on Thursday. The firm set a "buy" rating and a $114.00 price target on the business services provider's stock. Bank of America's price target would suggest a potential upside of 37.44% from the stock's current price.

Several other research analysts have also commented on GPN. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Global Payments from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a report on Thursday, October 8th. Oppenheimer raised shares of Global Payments from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $115.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of Global Payments from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Global Payments from $105.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued a "market perform" rating and issued a $83.00 price target on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Twelve investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have given a Hold rating and three have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $95.86.

Global Payments Trading Up 2.5%

NYSE GPN traded up $2.06 on Thursday, hitting $82.95. The company's stock had a trading volume of 68,688 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,354,981. Global Payments has a 52-week low of $61.16 and a 52-week high of $95.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.90. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $87.53 and its 200 day simple moving average is $77.46. The firm has a market cap of $21.95 billion, a P/E ratio of -27.78, a PEG ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 0.80.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The business services provider reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.44 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $3.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.16 billion. Global Payments had a positive return on equity of 13.80% and a negative net margin of 9.16%. The business's revenue was up 68.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $3.10 earnings per share. Global Payments has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.600-13.800 EPS. Research analysts predict that Global Payments will post 13.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Global Payments

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Gtcr LLC bought a new position in Global Payments in the 1st quarter worth $2,911,939,000. Gradient Investments LLC grew its holdings in Global Payments by 156.9% during the second quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 45,565 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $3,306,000 after purchasing an additional 27,828 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC raised its stake in shares of Global Payments by 40.0% in the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 912,590 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $65,864,000 after buying an additional 260,606 shares during the period. Lone Peak Global Investors LLC raised its stake in shares of Global Payments by 6.1% in the second quarter. Lone Peak Global Investors LLC now owns 326,833 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $23,715,000 after buying an additional 18,711 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC lifted its position in shares of Global Payments by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,495,339 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $108,502,000 after buying an additional 58,960 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.76% of the company's stock.

Global Payments Company Profile

Global Payments Inc NYSE: GPN is a payments technology and software company that provides payment processing and related services to merchants, financial institutions and other organizations. Its offerings help businesses accept payments through credit cards, debit cards, digital wallets and other channels, both in physical locations and online.

The company provides point-of-sale systems, payment processing, commerce software, fraud prevention, analytics and other business-management tools.

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