Merit Financial Group LLC Has $585,000 Holdings in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN)

Merit Financial Group LLC grew its position in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) by 10.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 5,219 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 489 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Global Payments were worth $585,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Avanza Fonder AB bought a new position in Global Payments in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,154,000. Retireful LLC raised its holdings in Global Payments by 231.0% in the 4th quarter. Retireful LLC now owns 19,716 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,209,000 after buying an additional 13,760 shares during the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its holdings in Global Payments by 27.9% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 7,358 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $825,000 after buying an additional 1,604 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Global Payments by 1,559.6% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 548,833 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $61,502,000 after buying an additional 515,763 shares during the period. Finally, SS&H Financial Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in Global Payments by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. SS&H Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 4,759 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $534,000 after acquiring an additional 614 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.76% of the company’s stock.

Global Payments Stock Performance

Shares of GPN stock opened at $108.52 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $113.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $107.39. Global Payments Inc. has a 12 month low of $91.60 and a 12 month high of $141.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.62 billion, a PE ratio of 20.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.00.

Global Payments Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.92%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Global Payments’s payout ratio is presently 18.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on GPN shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Global Payments from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Barclays upped their price target on Global Payments from $120.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Global Payments from $126.00 to $122.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Monness Crespi & Hardt reduced their target price on Global Payments from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of Global Payments from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $135.71.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robert H. B. Baldwin, Jr. purchased 5,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $116.00 per share, for a total transaction of $672,800.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 42,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,957,608. This represents a 15.70 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.98% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.