Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) PT Lowered to $160.00 at Evercore ISI

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) had its target price decreased by Evercore ISI from $170.00 to $160.00 in a report released on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. Evercore ISI currently has an outperform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

Several other research firms have also commented on GPN. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Global Payments from $160.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Monness Crespi & Hardt reduced their target price on shares of Global Payments from $175.00 to $165.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 3rd. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Global Payments from $143.00 to $128.00 and set a market perform rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of Global Payments from $158.00 to $150.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Global Payments from $160.00 to $145.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. One investment 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $145.68.

Global Payments Stock Performance

Global Payments stock opened at $94.82 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $106.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $121.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market cap of $24.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 0.98. Global Payments has a fifty-two week low of $91.60 and a fifty-two week high of $141.77.

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

Global Payments Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Global Payments

In related news, VP Andrea M. Carter sold 3,300 shares of Global Payments stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 25,209 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,806,770.06. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.98% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt raised its holdings in Global Payments by 70.4% in the fourth quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 564 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $72,000 after buying an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC purchased a new position in Global Payments in the fourth quarter worth about $210,000. McKinley Carter Wealth Services Inc. raised its holdings in Global Payments by 35.4% in the fourth quarter. McKinley Carter Wealth Services Inc. now owns 46,953 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $5,963,000 after buying an additional 12,273 shares during the last quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Global Payments by 60.5% in the third quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 19,593 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,261,000 after buying an additional 7,387 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cibc World Markets Corp raised its holdings in Global Payments by 29.1% in the fourth quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 82,672 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $10,499,000 after buying an additional 18,615 shares during the last quarter. 89.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.