Kentucky Retirement Systems Reduces Stake in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN)

Kentucky Retirement Systems lowered its position in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 17,485 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 240 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Global Payments were worth $1,959,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of GPN. Creative Planning boosted its position in Global Payments by 8.2% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 25,986 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $2,662,000 after buying an additional 1,959 shares during the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Global Payments by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,582 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 221 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC boosted its position in Global Payments by 13.9% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 4,158 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $426,000 after purchasing an additional 508 shares in the last quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its position in Global Payments by 40.6% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 5,729 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $587,000 after purchasing an additional 1,655 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Greenleaf Trust purchased a new stake in Global Payments in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $200,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.76% of the company’s stock.

Global Payments Stock Down 2.3 %

Shares of GPN opened at $103.19 on Friday. Global Payments Inc. has a 52-week low of $91.60 and a 52-week high of $140.38. The company has a market capitalization of $25.55 billion, a PE ratio of 16.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.01. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $109.94 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $108.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66.

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

Global Payments Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.97%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Global Payments’s payout ratio is 16.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on GPN. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on Global Payments from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Global Payments from $143.00 to $130.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $122.00 price objective (down previously from $155.00) on shares of Global Payments in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Citigroup lowered their price objective 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Global Payments from $118.00 to $115.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $134.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Global Payments news, Director Robert H. B. Baldwin, Jr. acquired 5,800 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $116.00 per share, with a total value of $672,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 42,738 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,957,608. This trade represents a 15.70 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.98% 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.