Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) in a research report report published on Wednesday, MarketBeat reports. The brokerage issued an equal weight rating and a $100.00 price target on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on Global Payments from $145.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. UBS Group increased their price objective on Global Payments from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut their price objective on Global Payments from $175.00 to $165.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 3rd. Robert W. Baird cut their price objective on Global Payments from $182.00 to $150.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Global Payments from $143.00 to $128.00 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and twenty-one have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $147.36.

Global Payments Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of NYSE:GPN opened at $95.44 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $112.33 and its 200 day moving average is $123.56. Global Payments has a 1 year low of $95.12 and a 1 year high of $141.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.94, a P/E/G ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.92.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The business services provider reported $2.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.07. Global Payments had a return on equity of 11.72% and a net margin of 13.40%. The company had revenue of $2.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.17 billion. On average, research analysts predict that Global Payments will post 11.08 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Global Payments Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 14th. Global Payments’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.84%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Global Payments news, VP Andrea M. Carter sold 3,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.34, for a total transaction of $367,422.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 25,209 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,806,770.06. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.98% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Global Payments

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Aurora Investment Counsel raised its position in Global Payments by 3.6% in the first quarter. Aurora Investment Counsel now owns 10,675 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,427,000 after purchasing an additional 368 shares during the period. Boston Partners raised its position in Global Payments by 0.3% in the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,797,677 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $639,967,000 after purchasing an additional 12,196 shares during the period. Cetera Advisors LLC raised its position in Global Payments by 34.9% in the first quarter. Cetera Advisors LLC now owns 4,284 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $573,000 after purchasing an additional 1,108 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in Global Payments by 531.9% in the first quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 24,238 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,240,000 after purchasing an additional 20,402 shares during the period. Finally, PGGM Investments purchased a new stake in Global Payments in the first quarter valued at $489,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.76% of the company’s stock.

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.