Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) Stock Rating Lowered by Sanford C. Bernstein

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) was downgraded by research analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have a $112.00 target price on the business services provider’s stock, down from their previous target price of $135.00. Sanford C. Bernstein’s target price indicates a potential upside of 12.13% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Susquehanna restated a “positive” rating and set a $147.00 price target on shares of Global Payments in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Global Payments from $126.00 to $122.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on shares of Global Payments from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. William Blair lowered shares of Global Payments from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on Global Payments from $145.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 30th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Global Payments has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $137.65.

Global Payments Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of GPN stock opened at $99.88 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $25.49 billion, a PE ratio of 19.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.98. Global Payments has a 52-week low of $91.60 and a 52-week high of $141.77. The business’s fifty day moving average is $105.69 and its 200 day moving average is $105.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 7th. The business services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.90 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.32 billion. Global Payments had a return on equity of 11.93% and a net margin of 14.26%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.48 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Global Payments will post 11.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CAO David M. Sheffield sold 1,651 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.73, for a total transaction of $166,305.23. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 20,531 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,068,087.63. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.98% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Global Payments

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in GPN. First Financial Corp IN raised its stake in Global Payments by 39.1% during the first quarter. First Financial Corp IN now owns 505 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $67,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. West Paces Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Global Payments by 54.5% in the 1st quarter. West Paces Advisors Inc. now owns 309 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Hengehold Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Global Payments in the 1st quarter worth about $243,000. WoodTrust Financial Corp purchased a new stake in Global Payments during the 1st quarter valued at about $200,000. Finally, Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC increased its stake in Global Payments by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC now owns 34,435 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $4,603,000 after purchasing an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. 89.76% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.