Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) Receives $138.55 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Shares of Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty-seven research firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, ten have assigned a hold recommendation and sixteen have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $138.55.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer started coverage on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued a "market perform" rating on the stock. Susquehanna reaffirmed a "positive" rating and issued a $147.00 price target on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. William Blair cut Global Payments from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Global Payments from $135.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on shares of Global Payments from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 16th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Global Payments news, Director Robert H. B. Baldwin, Jr. purchased 5,800 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $116.00 per share, for a total transaction of $672,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 42,738 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,957,608. This trade represents a 15.70 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.98% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Global Payments

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its position in shares of Global Payments by 45.4% during the second quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 15,499 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $1,499,000 after acquiring an additional 4,838 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Global Payments by 30.4% in the 2nd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,361 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $228,000 after purchasing an additional 550 shares in the last quarter. TD Asset Management Inc raised its position in Global Payments by 6.0% in the 2nd quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 124,626 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $12,051,000 after purchasing an additional 7,033 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of Global Payments by 24.0% in the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 71,779 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $6,868,000 after buying an additional 13,883 shares during the period. Finally, North Star Asset Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Global Payments by 10.8% during the second quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc. now owns 261,175 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $25,256,000 after buying an additional 25,373 shares in the last quarter. 89.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Global Payments Price Performance

NYSE GPN traded up $0.68 on Friday, hitting $112.58. The company had a trading volume of 896,635 shares, compared to its average volume of 928,217. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The company has a market capitalization of $28.65 billion, a PE ratio of 21.20, a PEG ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.00. Global Payments has a 12-month low of $91.60 and a 12-month high of $141.77. The company's fifty day moving average price is $113.35 and its 200-day moving average price is $106.15.

Global Payments Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.89%. Global Payments's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 18.83%.

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.