Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) Stock

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) had its price target increased by investment analysts at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $87.00 to $90.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “market perform” rating on the business services provider’s stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods’ price target suggests a potential upside of 9.15% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $65.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Global Payments from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on Global Payments from $85.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, November 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Global Payments from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. Finally, Stephens dropped their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $95.00 to $90.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $91.14.

Global Payments Price Performance

Shares of GPN opened at $82.46 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83. The firm has a market cap of $19.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.24, a PEG ratio of 0.50 and a beta of 0.76. Global Payments has a 52 week low of $65.93 and a 52 week high of $106.26. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $76.02 and a 200-day moving average of $80.44.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $3.18 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.16 by $0.02. Global Payments had a net margin of 16.92% and a return on equity of 12.72%. The firm had revenue of $2.32 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.32 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.85 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Global Payments has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.800-14.000 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Global Payments will post 11.89 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Global Payments

In related news, Director Robert H. B. Baldwin, Jr. purchased 10,392 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $81.42 per share, for a total transaction of $846,116.64. Following the transaction, the director owned 59,303 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,828,450.26. This represents a 21.25% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP David M. Sheffield sold 2,016 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.41, for a total transaction of $164,122.56. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 14,438 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,175,397.58. This represents a 12.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 1.01% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Global Payments

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 0.6% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,542,460 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,955,908,000 after buying an additional 149,441 shares during the period. Pzena Investment Management LLC raised its position in Global Payments by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 11,409,697 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $883,111,000 after acquiring an additional 500,887 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in Global Payments by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 7,349,876 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $610,633,000 after acquiring an additional 499,695 shares during the last quarter. Glenview Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Global Payments by 13.8% in the 2nd quarter. Glenview Capital Management LLC now owns 4,316,892 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $345,524,000 after acquiring an additional 523,209 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Global Payments during the 4th quarter valued at about $276,014,000. 89.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Global Payments News

Here are the key news stories impacting Global Payments this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings beat and robust 2026 guidance — GPN reported adjusted Q4 EPS above estimates and set FY‑2026 guidance of $13.80–$14.00, which topped the Street and implies double‑digit EPS growth; that beat/guide combo is the core catalyst for the rally. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: $2.5B total buyback program, including $550M accelerated repurchase — management approved an expanded $2.5B repurchase framework and kicked off $550M of accelerated buys, which reduces share count and supports EPS. Read More. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: New quarterly dividend announced — GPN declared a $0.25 quarterly dividend, signaling confidence in cash flow and adding modest income appeal to the stock. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upside and supportive notes — several firms raised price targets or reiterated constructive views (Wells Fargo raised its PT to $105; Keefe Bruyette & Woods raised to $90), lending validation to the company’s outlook. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical momentum — GPN cleared its 20-, 50- and 200‑day moving averages, which attracts momentum/technical buyers but doesn’t change fundamentals. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Heightened bearish/options activity — recent unusual activity showed a sharp rise in put buying (about 7,593 puts, ~112% above average), which could signal some hedging or skepticism from options traders even as the stock rallies.
• Negative Sentiment: Mixed sell‑side stance — some firms remain cautious: BNP Paribas raised its price target but kept an Underperform rating, highlighting that not all analysts are convinced the upside is sustainable. Read More.

About Global Payments

Global Payments Inc (NYSE: GPN) is a worldwide provider of payment technology and software solutions that enables commerce for merchants, issuers and enterprises. The company develops and operates payment processing networks, point-of-sale systems and cloud-based software that facilitate electronic transactions across in-store, online and mobile channels. Its services span merchant acquiring, payment gateway services, omnichannel commerce platforms, and solutions for recurring and subscription billing.

Global Payments offers a range of products and services including integrated payment terminals and point-of-sale software, e-commerce and gateway technologies, fraud prevention and tokenization tools, and business analytics and reporting.