Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Hold”

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Friday.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on GPN. B. Riley decreased their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $204.00 to $194.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Global Payments from $156.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut their price target on Global Payments from $165.00 to $155.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on Global Payments from $125.00 to $122.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of Global Payments in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $138.55.

Global Payments Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:GPN opened at $111.90 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $113.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $105.93. Global Payments has a twelve month low of $91.60 and a twelve month high of $141.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The company has a market capitalization of $28.48 billion, a PE ratio of 21.07, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.00.

Insider Transactions at Global Payments

In other news, Director Robert H. B. Baldwin, Jr. purchased 5,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The stock was acquired 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 $4,957,608. This represents a 15.70 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.98% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Global Payments

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 65.6% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,982,496 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $203,047,000 after acquiring an additional 785,539 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Global Payments by 188.1% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,157,728 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $109,857,000 after purchasing an additional 755,898 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in Global Payments by 22.7% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,646,854 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $271,090,000 after purchasing an additional 490,411 shares during the last quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in Global Payments by 316.7% in the 2nd quarter. D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. now owns 609,939 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $58,981,000 after purchasing an additional 463,568 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Soros Fund Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Global Payments during the 3rd quarter worth about $47,113,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.76% of the company’s stock.

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.