Global Payments Inc. $GPN Stock: Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Lowers Stake

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group cut its Global Payments stake by 10.6% in the third quarter, selling 56,748 shares and retaining 480,904 shares worth about $39.3 million.
• Global Payments reported quarterly EPS of $3.46, slightly above the $3.44 consensus estimate, while revenue of $3.16 billion matched forecasts and rose 68.6% year over year.
• Analysts’ consensus rating is Hold, with an average price target of $95.55; 13 analysts rated the stock Buy, 17 Hold, and three Sell.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN - Free Report) by 10.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 480,904 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 56,748 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned approximately 0.18% of Global Payments worth $39,275,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mather Group LLC. increased its holdings in Global Payments by 25.2% during the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 622 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $51,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in shares of Global Payments by 9.8% in the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,433 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $104,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. Cidel Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. Cidel Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,575 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $374,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the last quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 30.9% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Network Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 674 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 159 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Southern Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Global Payments by 5.1% during the 1st quarter. Southern Financial Group LLC now owns 3,651 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 178 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.76% of the company's stock.

Global Payments Price Performance

GPN stock opened at $96.11 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.43 billion, a PE ratio of -32.25, a P/E/G ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 0.83. Global Payments Inc. has a one year low of $61.16 and a one year high of $101.32. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average of $86.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $77.31.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The business services provider reported $3.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.44 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.16 billion. Global Payments had a negative net margin of 9.16% and a positive return on equity of 13.80%. Global Payments's quarterly revenue was up 68.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.10 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Global Payments Inc. will post 13.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on GPN shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Global Payments from $105.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Robert W. Baird set a $120.00 price objective on Global Payments in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Weiss Ratings raised Global Payments from a "sell (d)" rating to a "sell (d+)" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Wolfe Research reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $125.00 target price (up from $110.00) on shares of Global Payments in a report on Tuesday, August 25th. Finally, William Blair restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Hold rating and three have assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Global Payments presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $95.55.

About Global Payments

Global Payments Inc NYSE: GPN is a financial technology and payments company that provides software and payment solutions to businesses, financial institutions and other organizations. Its services help merchants accept payments through credit cards, debit cards, digital wallets and other electronic methods across in-store, online and mobile channels.

The company offers payment processing, point-of-sale technology, commerce management software, payment security and reporting tools. Its solutions are used in industries including retail, restaurants, hospitality, healthcare, education and government.

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