Global Payments Inc. $GPN Shares Purchased by Focused Investors LLC

Key Points

• Focused Investors LLC increased its stake in Global Payments Inc. by 33.9%, now holding 1,167,900 shares after acquiring an additional 295,600 shares in the second quarter.
• Several hedge funds, including NBC Securities Inc. and Golden State Wealth Management LLC, have recently modified their holdings, indicating a growing institutional interest in Global Payments.
• Analysts maintain a bullish outlook on Global Payments, with Mizuho upgrading its rating and increasing the price target from $86.00 to $114.00.

Focused Investors LLC increased its position in shares of Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN - Free Report) by 33.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,167,900 shares of the business services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 295,600 shares during the quarter. Global Payments makes up about 3.1% of Focused Investors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Focused Investors LLC owned approximately 0.48% of Global Payments worth $93,479,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of GPN. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Global Payments during the 1st quarter worth $30,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 546.6% during the 1st quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 375 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares during the period. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new position in shares of Global Payments during the 1st quarter worth $37,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of Global Payments during the 1st quarter worth $42,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 4,866.7% during the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 447 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $44,000 after purchasing an additional 438 shares during the period. 89.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on GPN shares. Mizuho upgraded Global Payments from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $86.00 to $114.00 in a report on Friday, July 25th. B. Riley reissued a "buy" rating on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Global Payments from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. KeyCorp reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $100.00 target price (up previously from $90.00) on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Global Payments from $81.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fifteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $103.75.

Global Payments Trading Up 1.0%

GPN opened at $88.09 on Wednesday. Global Payments Inc. has a one year low of $65.93 and a one year high of $120.00. The company has a market cap of $21.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.40, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 0.95 and a current ratio of 0.95. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $85.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $82.53.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The business services provider reported $3.10 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.06 by $0.04. Global Payments had a return on equity of 12.47% and a net margin of 15.07%.The business had revenue of $2.36 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.36 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business 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 expect that Global Payments Inc. will post 11.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Global Payments Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, September 12th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 12th. Global Payments's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.48%.

Insider Transactions at Global Payments

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 stock was 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 in the company, valued at $2,641,318. This trade represents a 6.11% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 1.01% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Global Payments Company 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.

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