Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Sells 17,509 Shares of Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans cut its holdings in shares of Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN - Free Report) by 48.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 18,927 shares of the business services provider's stock after selling 17,509 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans' holdings in Global Payments were worth $2,124,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Global Payments during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC bought a new position in Global Payments in the 4th quarter valued at about $37,000. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. acquired a new stake in Global Payments during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Manchester Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 177.5% during the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 469 shares of the business services provider's stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, LRI Investments LLC increased its stake 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.76% of the company's stock.

Global Payments Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE GPN traded down $0.02 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $98.42. The company's stock had a trading volume of 86,041 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,026,136. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.93, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.04. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $103.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $107.16. Global Payments Inc. has a 12-month low of $90.99 and a 12-month high of $129.35.

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Global Payments (NYSE:GPN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $2.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.31 billion. Global Payments had a return on equity of 12.21% and a net margin of 15.54%. As a group, equities analysts predict that Global Payments Inc. will post 11.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Global Payments Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. Global Payments's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $140.00 to $135.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Global Payments from $166.00 to $163.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 14th. Stephens cut Global Payments from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $125.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. Barclays reduced their target price on Global Payments from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $156.00 to $149.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $134.10.

Global Payments 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.