Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) Given New $135.00 Price Target at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) had its price objective reduced by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $140.00 to $135.00 in a report issued on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the business services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $122.00 target price (down from $155.00) on shares of Global Payments in a report on Thursday, January 9th. StockNews.com raised shares of Global Payments from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Citigroup reduced their target price on Global Payments from $138.00 to $135.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Global Payments from $166.00 to $163.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, Stephens downgraded Global Payments from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $125.00 to $120.00 in a report on Friday, January 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $134.10.

Global Payments Stock Performance

NYSE:GPN opened at $98.09 on Monday. Global Payments has a twelve month low of $90.99 and a twelve month high of $133.63. The company has a market capitalization of $24.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $103.51 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $107.25.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.98 by ($0.14). The company had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.31 billion. Global Payments had a return on equity of 12.21% and a net margin of 15.54%. As a group, research analysts expect that Global Payments will post 11.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Global Payments Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th were paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 14th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.02%. Global Payments’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 16.18%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Global Payments

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of GPN. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Global Payments during the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Optiver Holding B.V. bought a new stake in shares of Global Payments in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Global Payments during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. acquired a new stake in shares of Global Payments during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, True Wealth Design LLC bought a new position in Global Payments during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.76% of the company’s stock.

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.