BTIG Research Issues Pessimistic Forecast for Shift4 Payments (NYSE:FOUR) Stock Price

Key Points

• BTIG Research cut its price target on Shift4 Payments from $80 to $70 but retained a "buy" rating, and several other analysts have also lowered targets (Goldman to $56, Mizuho to $90, Oppenheimer to $98), leaving the consensus as a "Moderate Buy" with an average target near $79.89.
• Shares are trading around $48.21, well below the 52‑week high of $108.50; the company slightly beat EPS ($1.60 vs $1.56) but marginally missed revenue, and set FY2026 guidance of $5.50–$5.70 EPS versus sell‑side forecasts of about 3.7 EPS for the current year.
• Insiders (including the CEO) sold shares in December at roughly $69, yet insiders have been net buyers over the last 90 days and institutional ownership is very high at about 98.87%, with several funds substantially increasing stakes.

Shift4 Payments (NYSE:FOUR - Get Free Report) had its price target reduced by research analysts at BTIG Research from $80.00 to $70.00 in a research note issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "buy" rating on the stock. BTIG Research's price objective indicates a potential upside of 45.20% from the company's current price.

A number of other analysts also recently commented on the stock. Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Shift4 Payments from $102.00 to $90.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on Shift4 Payments from $112.00 to $98.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of Shift4 Payments in a report on Monday, December 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $73.00 price target on shares of Shift4 Payments in a research report on Thursday, February 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Shift4 Payments from $81.00 to $56.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Shift4 Payments has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $79.89.

Shift4 Payments Stock Performance

FOUR traded up $0.75 during trading on Thursday, reaching $48.21. 236,196 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,517,167. Shift4 Payments has a 52 week low of $43.32 and a 52 week high of $108.50. The stock has a market cap of $4.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 45.91, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.66, a quick ratio of 1.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.66. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $60.09 and a 200 day moving average of $70.75.

Shift4 Payments (NYSE:FOUR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The company reported $1.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.56 by $0.04. Shift4 Payments had a net margin of 2.84% and a return on equity of 39.27%. The firm had revenue of $1.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.20 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.35 EPS. Shift4 Payments's quarterly revenue was up 50.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Shift4 Payments has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.500-5.700 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Shift4 Payments will post 3.7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Shift4 Payments

In related news, CEO David Taylor Lauber sold 12,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.00, for a total transaction of $828,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 273,588 shares in the company, valued at $18,877,572. This represents a 4.20% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Nancy Disman sold 5,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $69.50, for a total value of $347,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 130,420 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,064,190. This trade represents a 3.69% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 341,930 shares of company stock worth $15,661,068. Company insiders own 25.15% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Shift4 Payments

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. acquired a new position in Shift4 Payments in the third quarter valued at about $77,303,000. Wasatch Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Shift4 Payments by 16.4% in the second quarter. Wasatch Advisors LP now owns 6,338,567 shares of the company's stock valued at $628,215,000 after buying an additional 890,990 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its stake in shares of Shift4 Payments by 3,048.9% during the fourth quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 872,453 shares of the company's stock valued at $54,938,000 after purchasing an additional 844,746 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Shift4 Payments in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,635,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in shares of Shift4 Payments by 97.2% in the fourth quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,655,485 shares of the company's stock valued at $104,246,000 after purchasing an additional 816,155 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.87% of the company's stock.

About Shift4 Payments

Shift4 Payments is a U.S.-based provider of integrated payment processing and technology solutions, serving merchants across the hospitality, retail, e-commerce, gaming and lodging industries. The company's platform enables businesses to accept in-store, online and mobile payments through a combination of point-of-sale hardware, payment gateway services and back-office software. By centralizing transaction processing and reporting, Shift4 aims to simplify payments, enhance security and streamline operations for its merchant customers.

The company's core offerings include encrypted point-of-sale terminals, cloud-based payment gateways, and developer-friendly APIs for online and mobile checkouts.

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