Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) Shares Sold by Rhumbline Advisers

Rhumbline Advisers lessened its stake in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN - Free Report) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 460,841 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 6,229 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers owned 0.18% of Global Payments worth $51,642,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cromwell Holdings LLC purchased a new position in Global Payments in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Global Payments in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Global Payments in the third quarter valued at about $33,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its stake in Global Payments by 59.6% in the third 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. Finally, Exchange Traded Concepts LLC purchased a new position in Global Payments in the third quarter valued at about $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.76% of the company's stock.

Global Payments Stock Performance

NYSE:GPN traded down $2.39 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $103.19. The company had a trading volume of 2,189,224 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,744,548. Global Payments Inc. has a 1-year low of $91.60 and a 1-year high of $140.38. The firm has a market cap of $25.55 billion, a PE ratio of 16.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.87 and a beta of 1.01. The business's 50 day moving average price is $109.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $108.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.93.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.98 by ($0.14). The business had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.31 billion. Global Payments had a return on equity of 12.21% and a net margin of 15.54%. Research analysts forecast that Global Payments Inc. will post 11.9 EPS for the current year.

Global Payments Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Global Payments's payout ratio is 16.18%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

GPN has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup dropped 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. Barclays dropped their price target on Global Payments from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Global Payments from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "neutral" rating and set a $122.00 price target (down previously from $155.00) on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Global Payments from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Global Payments has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $134.33.

Insider Transactions 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 dated Friday, December 13th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $116.00 per share, with a total value of $672,800.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 42,738 shares in the company, valued at $4,957,608. This represents a 15.70 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.98% of the company's stock.

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.