Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) Shares Purchased by Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its stake in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) by 1.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,648 shares of the business services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 456 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Global Payments were worth $3,257,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt lifted its stake in shares of Global Payments by 70.4% in the 4th quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 564 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $72,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares during the period. Waverly Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 60.5% in the 3rd quarter. Waverly Advisors LLC now owns 19,593 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,261,000 after purchasing an additional 7,387 shares in the last quarter. Shaker Investments LLC OH bought a new stake in shares of Global Payments in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,815,000. AFS Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Global Payments in the 4th quarter worth approximately $202,000. Finally, Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 19,519 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $2,479,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. 89.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Global Payments Stock Performance

GPN stock opened at $126.95 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The company has a market capitalization of $32.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.58, a P/E/G ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.96. Global Payments Inc. has a 12 month low of $95.12 and a 12 month high of $141.77. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $129.88 and a two-hundred day moving average of $124.56.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 14th. The business services provider reported $2.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $2.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.18 billion. Global Payments had a net margin of 10.22% and a return on equity of 11.44%. Global Payments’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.30 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Global Payments Inc. will post 10.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Global Payments Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. Global Payments’s dividend payout ratio is currently 26.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Global Payments from $130.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Global Payments from $145.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Global Payments from $172.00 to $182.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Global Payments from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Global Payments from $154.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and twenty have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $151.92.

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.