Insider Selling: Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) VP Sells 3,300 Shares of Stock

Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN - Get Free Report) VP Andrea M. Carter sold 3,300 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.34, for a total transaction of $367,422.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 25,209 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,806,770.06. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

Global Payments Stock Down 2.2 %

Shares of Global Payments stock traded down $2.40 on Friday, hitting $109.17. 2,167,741 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,277,536. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. Global Payments Inc. has a 12-month low of $95.12 and a 12-month high of $141.77. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $126.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $124.72. The company has a market cap of $27.87 billion, a PE ratio of 21.67, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.97.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The business services provider reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.01. Global Payments had a return on equity of 11.72% and a net margin of 13.40%. The firm had revenue of $2.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.18 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.30 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Global Payments Inc. will post 10.95 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, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. Global Payments's payout ratio is 19.84%.

Institutional Trading of Global Payments

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GPN. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Global Payments during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Global Payments during the 4th quarter worth $41,000. West Paces Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Global Payments by 54.5% in the 1st quarter. West Paces Advisors Inc. now owns 309 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in Global Payments by 77.7% during the third quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 407 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the last quarter. Finally, North Star Investment Management Corp. raised its position in shares of Global Payments by 154.7% in the 1st quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 354 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.76% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on GPN shares. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on Global Payments from $154.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 15th. Mizuho reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $129.00 price objective on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Global Payments from $160.00 to $145.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 2nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Global Payments from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their target price on Global Payments from $160.00 to $152.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $150.00.

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.

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