MetLife Investment Management LLC Has $6.78 Million Position in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN)

MetLife Investment Management LLC cut its position in shares of Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) by 2.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 66,158 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 1,909 shares during the quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Global Payments were worth $6,776,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Global Payments during the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Cromwell Holdings LLC bought a new position in Global Payments in the third quarter worth $25,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in Global Payments during the third quarter worth $33,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC bought a new stake in Global Payments in the 2nd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its stake in shares of Global Payments by 59.6% in the 3rd quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 383 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. 89.76% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on shares of Global Payments in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. Barclays lowered their price objective on Global Payments from $145.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 30th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price target on Global Payments from $143.00 to $130.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Susquehanna reiterated a “positive” rating and set a $147.00 price objective on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein cut Global Payments from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $135.00 to $112.00 in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Global Payments presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $136.57.

Global Payments Price Performance

Shares of GPN stock opened at $118.96 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $30.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.40, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.97. Global Payments Inc. has a 12 month low of $91.60 and a 12 month high of $141.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $106.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $103.84.

Global Payments Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.84%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. Global Payments’s dividend payout ratio is 18.83%.

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.