AQR Capital Management LLC Purchases 84,285 Shares of Global Payments Inc. $GPN

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Global Payments Inc. by 6.1%, now owning approximately 1,458,570 shares valued at $140.4 million following the purchase of additional shares.
• Analyst ratings have varied, with Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raising the target price to $85, while TD Cowen downgraded the stock from "strong-buy" to "hold"; however, ten analysts maintain a "Buy" rating.
• Global Payments announced a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, with a payout ratio of 17.48%, contributing to a 1.2% annualized yield for shareholders.

AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN - Free Report) by 6.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,458,570 shares of the business services provider's stock after buying an additional 84,285 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.60% of Global Payments worth $140,402,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Perigon Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Global Payments by 3.8% in the first quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,932 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $385,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the period. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Global Payments by 7.9% in the first quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,135 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $209,000 after purchasing an additional 157 shares during the period. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Global Payments by 4.1% in the first quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 4,342 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $425,000 after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the period. Vident Advisory LLC raised its holdings in Global Payments by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 10,382 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $1,163,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WESCAP Management Group Inc. raised its holdings in Global Payments by 2.5% in the first quarter. WESCAP Management Group Inc. now owns 7,102 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $695,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. 89.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

GPN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Truist Financial upped their price target on shares of Global Payments from $79.00 to $83.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Global Payments from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. TD Cowen cut shares of Global Payments from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Global Payments from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, B. Riley reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Global Payments in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nineteen have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $112.21.

Global Payments Price Performance

GPN traded down $0.35 on Monday, reaching $87.43. The company had a trading volume of 1,782,233 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,754,418. The company has a fifty day moving average of $83.67 and a 200-day moving average of $84.41. The company has a market capitalization of $21.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.29, a PEG ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 0.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.95, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. Global Payments Inc. has a one year low of $65.93 and a one year high of $120.00.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The business services provider reported $3.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.06 by $0.04. Global Payments had a net margin of 15.07% and a return on equity of 12.47%. The company had revenue of $2.36 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.36 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.93 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Global Payments Inc. will post 11.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Global Payments Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 12th. Global Payments's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 17.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, General Counsel Dara L. Steele-Belkin sold 2,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.00, for a total transaction of $172,000.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel owned 30,713 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,641,318. This trade represents a 6.11% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.01% of the company's stock.

Global Payments Profile

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.