National Pension Service Decreases Holdings in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN)

National Pension Service lessened its holdings in shares of Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN - Free Report) by 16.5% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 402,048 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 79,332 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned approximately 0.16% of Global Payments worth $41,178,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Cromwell Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Global Payments in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. acquired a new stake in Global Payments in the first quarter valued at $31,000. LRI Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Global Payments in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC acquired a new position in shares of Global Payments during the 2nd quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its stake in Global Payments by 59.6% in the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 383 shares of the business services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. 89.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Global Payments Trading Down 2.7 %

Shares of NYSE:GPN traded down $3.12 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $111.92. The company had a trading volume of 2,024,005 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,290,077. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93. Global Payments Inc. has a one year low of $91.60 and a one year high of $141.77. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $104.58 and a 200 day moving average price of $103.83. The company has a market capitalization of $28.48 billion, a PE ratio of 21.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.97.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The business services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.90 by $0.03. Global Payments had a net margin of 13.61% and a return on equity of 11.94%. The firm had revenue of $2.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.32 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.48 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Global Payments Inc. will post 11.04 EPS for the current year.

Global Payments Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.89%. Global Payments's payout ratio is 18.83%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on GPN shares. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Global Payments to a "strong sell" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Global Payments from $143.00 to $130.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Global Payments from $118.00 to $115.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, October 29th. BTIG Research cut Global Payments from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, B. Riley reduced their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $204.00 to $194.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. One equities 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $136.50.

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.