Legacy Advisors LLC Reduces Holdings in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN)

Legacy Advisors LLC lessened its holdings in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) by 7.7% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 5,309 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 441 shares during the quarter. Legacy Advisors LLC’s holdings in Global Payments were worth $520,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of GPN. AIA Group Ltd purchased a new stake in Global Payments in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $349,000. Oribel Capital Management LP lifted its position in shares of Global Payments by 495.1% in the fourth quarter. Oribel Capital Management LP now owns 521,300 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $58,417,000 after acquiring an additional 433,700 shares in the last quarter. Focused Investors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Global Payments during the fourth quarter valued at $99,969,000. Bridgewater Associates LP increased its position in Global Payments by 88.6% during the 4th quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 892,958 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $100,065,000 after purchasing an additional 419,443 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in Global Payments by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,614,533 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $180,925,000 after purchasing an additional 72,992 shares in the last quarter. 89.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Global Payments Stock Up 3.5%

GPN opened at $79.01 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $19.27 billion, a PE ratio of 12.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 0.94. Global Payments Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.93 and a 1 year high of $120.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $76.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $94.62.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The business services provider reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.73 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $2.20 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.20 billion. Global Payments had a net margin of 15.48% and a return on equity of 12.33%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.59 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Global Payments Inc. will post 11.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Global Payments Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. Global Payments’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 16.13%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Cowen lowered shares of Global Payments from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $80.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Global Payments from $125.00 to $110.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on Global Payments in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $85.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird lowered their price objective on Global Payments from $145.00 to $100.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $110.91.

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.