Callodine Capital Management LP Takes $16.81 Million Position in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN)

Callodine Capital Management LP acquired a new position in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 150,000 shares of the business services provider's stock, valued at approximately $16,809,000. Global Payments accounts for 3.5% of Callodine Capital Management LP's investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position. Callodine Capital Management LP owned about 0.06% of Global Payments at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GPN. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co grew its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 288,573 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $32,327,000 after buying an additional 4,036 shares in the last quarter. Dean Investment Associates LLC boosted its position in Global Payments by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Dean Investment Associates LLC now owns 23,980 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $2,687,000 after acquiring an additional 328 shares during the period. Montag & Caldwell LLC grew its stake in Global Payments by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Montag & Caldwell LLC now owns 8,051 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $902,000 after acquiring an additional 557 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP increased its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 88.6% in the 4th quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 892,958 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $100,065,000 after purchasing an additional 419,443 shares during the period. Finally, Shannon River Fund Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Global Payments in the fourth quarter worth approximately $17,745,000. 89.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $166.00 to $163.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Stephens downgraded shares of Global Payments from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $125.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Friday, January 10th. TD Cowen cut Global Payments from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $78.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Monday. Wolfe Research restated a "peer perform" rating on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Global Payments from $105.00 to $77.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $114.86.

Global Payments Stock Performance

Global Payments stock traded up $0.68 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $72.07. The company had a trading volume of 1,934,813 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,374,131. The company has a 50 day moving average of $94.01 and a 200-day moving average of $104.52. Global Payments Inc. has a 52 week low of $65.93 and a 52 week high of $127.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a market cap of $17.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.66, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.97.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.98 by ($0.14). Global Payments had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 12.21%. The firm had revenue of $2.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.31 billion. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Global Payments Inc. will post 11.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Global Payments Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Global Payments's dividend payout ratio is 16.18%.

About Global Payments

Global Payments Inc provides payment technology and software solutions for card, check, and digital-based payments in the Americas, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific. It operates through two segments, Merchant Solutions and Issuer Solutions. The Merchant Solutions segment offers authorization, settlement and funding, customer support, chargeback resolution, terminal rental, sales and deployment, payment security, and consolidated billing and reporting services.