Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) Price Target Raised to $135.00 at Barclays

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) had its price target increased by Barclays from $120.00 to $135.00 in a research report released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the business services provider’s stock.

GPN has been the subject of a number of other research reports. BNP Paribas raised Global Payments to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Monness Crespi & Hardt dropped their price target on Global Payments from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Oppenheimer assumed coverage on shares of Global Payments in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Global Payments from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Stephens reduced their price target on shares of Global Payments from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, October 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.09.

Global Payments Stock Performance

GPN opened at $114.70 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $29.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.60, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $110.39 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $104.77. Global Payments has a 1-year low of $91.60 and a 1-year high of $141.77.

Global Payments Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 13th. Global Payments’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 18.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Global Payments

In related news, Director Robert H. B. Baldwin, Jr. purchased 5,800 shares of Global Payments stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $116.00 per share, with a total value of $672,800.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 42,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,957,608. This represents a 15.70 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.98% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Global Payments

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in GPN. Tidal Investments LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 0.3% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 26,946 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,760,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. SYM FINANCIAL Corp raised its position in Global Payments by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter. SYM FINANCIAL Corp now owns 2,440 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $250,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. Allen Mooney & Barnes Investment Advisors LLC now owns 8,210 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $841,000 after buying an additional 98 shares during the period. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators grew its position in shares of Global Payments by 27.2% during the 3rd quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 543 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $56,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Metis Global Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Global Payments by 1.4% during the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 8,257 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $846,000 after buying an additional 116 shares during the period. 89.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.