Equitable Trust Co. Raises Stake in Global Payments Inc. $GPN

Equitable Trust Co. raised its position in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) by 50.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 81,196 shares of the business services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 27,300 shares during the period. Equitable Trust Co.’s holdings in Global Payments were worth $6,746,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. North Star Investment Management Corp. raised its stake in Global Payments by 242.2% in the third quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 308 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 218 shares in the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Global Payments in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. SouthState Bank Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Global Payments during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. REAP Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Global Payments in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Mather Group LLC. purchased a new position in Global Payments in the third quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 89.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Global Payments News Roundup

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.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider David Lawrence Green sold 11,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.99, for a total transaction of $927,884.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 68,096 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,446,999.04. This represents a 14.56% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert H. B. Baldwin, Jr. acquired 10,392 shares of Global Payments stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $81.42 per share, with a total value of $846,116.64. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 59,303 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,828,450.26. This trade represents a 21.25% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders own 1.01% of the company’s stock.

Global Payments Price Performance

Global Payments stock opened at $82.46 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 1.69 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $76.02 and a 200-day simple moving average of $80.41. Global Payments Inc. has a 12 month low of $65.93 and a 12 month high of $106.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.52 billion, a PE ratio of 14.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 0.76.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 18th. The business services provider reported $3.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.16 by $0.02. Global Payments had a net margin of 16.92% and a return on equity of 12.72%. The company had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.32 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.85 EPS. Global Payments’s revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Global Payments has set its FY 2026 guidance at 13.800-14.000 EPS. 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 announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 9th. Global Payments’s dividend payout ratio is 17.27%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $87.00 price target (up from $80.00) on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Thursday. Raymond James Financial raised Global Payments to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Evercore cut their target price on Global Payments from $90.00 to $85.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Global Payments from $85.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $91.14.

Global Payments Company Profile

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.