Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) Shares Pass Above 200 Day Moving Average – What’s Next?

Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN)’s share price crossed above its two hundred day moving average during trading on Wednesday . The stock has a two hundred day moving average of $105.89 and traded as high as $112.43. Global Payments shares last traded at $112.06, with a volume of 938,433 shares trading hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of Global Payments from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. BTIG Research cut shares of Global Payments from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Oppenheimer began coverage on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued a “market perform” rating for the company. Finally, Stephens dropped their target price on Global Payments from $130.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and sixteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $138.55.

Global Payments Price Performance

The stock has a fifty day moving average of $113.09 and a 200 day moving average of $105.93. The stock has a market cap of $28.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.18, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.93.

Global Payments Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.89%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. Global Payments’s payout ratio is 18.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Global Payments

In other news, Director Robert H. B. Baldwin, Jr. purchased 5,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were bought at an average price of $116.00 per share, for a total transaction of $672,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 42,738 shares in the company, valued at $4,957,608. This represents a 15.70 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.98% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Global Payments

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Stanley Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Global Payments by 18.9% in the 2nd quarter. Stanley Capital Management LLC now owns 125,608 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $12,146,000 after purchasing an additional 20,000 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its stake in shares of Global Payments by 65.6% during the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,982,496 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $203,047,000 after buying an additional 785,539 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of Global Payments during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $562,000. Poplar Forest Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Global Payments during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $13,184,000. Finally, River Road Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Global Payments by 158.6% in the 3rd quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 491,331 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $50,322,000 after acquiring an additional 301,358 shares during the period. 89.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.