Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) Shares Sold by Forge First Asset Management Inc.

Forge First Asset Management Inc. reduced its position in shares of Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) by 11.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 92,078 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 12,200 shares during the period. Global Payments accounts for about 3.7% of Forge First Asset Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Forge First Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Global Payments were worth $10,321,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Tidal Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Global Payments by 0.3% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 26,946 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,760,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Sage Capital Advisors llc grew its position in shares of Global Payments by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Sage Capital Advisors llc now owns 28,232 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $3,164,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp grew its position in shares of Global Payments by 4.1% in the third quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 2,440 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $250,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in shares of Global Payments by 11.2% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 992 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $111,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Global Payments by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 3,685 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $413,000 after purchasing an additional 103 shares in the last quarter. 89.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Global Payments

In other Global Payments news, Director Robert H. B. Baldwin, Jr. bought 5,800 shares of Global Payments stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost 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 approximately $4,957,608. This represents a 15.70 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.98% of the company’s stock.

Global Payments Stock Performance

Shares of Global Payments stock opened at $93.35 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $23.12 billion, a PE ratio of 15.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.04. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $107.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $108.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.97. Global Payments Inc. has a 1 year low of $91.60 and a 1 year high of $140.38.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.98 by ($0.14). Global Payments had a net margin of 15.54% and a return on equity of 12.21%. The business had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.31 billion. Equities analysts forecast that Global Payments Inc. will post 11.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Global Payments Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Global Payments’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.18%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on GPN. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $122.00 price objective (down from $155.00) on shares of Global Payments in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Global Payments from $156.00 to $149.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Global Payments from $138.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 18th. Stephens cut Global Payments from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $125.00 to $120.00 in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Global Payments from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $134.33.

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.