Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. Sells 18,673 Shares of Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN)

Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. lowered its stake in shares of Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN - Free Report) by 15.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 99,510 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 18,673 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Global Payments were worth $11,151,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of GPN. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Global Payments in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Global Payments in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Global Payments in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. bought a new stake in Global Payments in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 94.4% during the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 517 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares during the period. 89.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Global Payments Trading Down 3.8 %

Global Payments stock traded down $3.72 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $93.35. The stock had a trading volume of 2,568,108 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,081,122. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $107.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $108.63. Global Payments Inc. has a 52 week low of $91.60 and a 52 week high of $140.38. The stock has a market cap of $23.12 billion, a PE ratio of 15.11, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.93.

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Global Payments (NYSE:GPN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) 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 analysts' expectations of $2.31 billion. Analysts forecast that Global Payments Inc. will post 11.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Global Payments Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.07%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Global Payments's payout ratio is currently 16.18%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently issued reports on GPN. The Goldman Sachs Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $122.00 price target (down previously from $155.00) on shares of Global Payments in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. StockNews.com upgraded Global Payments from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Bank of America cut their price target on Global Payments from $156.00 to $149.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Global Payments from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Citigroup cut their target price on Global Payments from $138.00 to $135.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. One 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $134.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Robert H. B. Baldwin, Jr. purchased 5,800 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $116.00 per share, with a total value of $672,800.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 42,738 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,957,608. This represents a 15.70 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.98% of the company's stock.

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.