Norges Bank Invests $273.84 Million in Global Payments Inc. $GPN

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 3,421,335 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $273,844,000. Norges Bank owned approximately 1.41% of Global Payments at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of GPN. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Global Payments by 32.6% in the second quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 11,050,253 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $884,462,000 after purchasing an additional 2,716,156 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Global Payments in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $94,107,000. Amundi boosted its stake in shares of Global Payments by 77.5% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 2,001,585 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $186,107,000 after acquiring an additional 874,175 shares during the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its stake in shares of Global Payments by 346.9% during the 1st quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 912,667 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $89,368,000 after purchasing an additional 708,451 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strs Ohio acquired a new stake in Global Payments during the first quarter worth approximately $66,441,000. 89.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective on shares of Global Payments in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Global Payments from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 5th. Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Truist Financial cut their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $90.00 to $84.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Global Payments from $85.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and fifteen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $103.90.

Global Payments Stock Performance

Global Payments stock opened at $76.78 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $18.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 0.95. Global Payments Inc. has a 12 month low of $65.93 and a 12 month high of $120.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.95 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $81.31 and its 200-day moving average is $81.54.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The business services provider reported $3.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.23 by $0.03. Global Payments had a net margin of 15.07% and a return on equity of 12.47%. The firm had revenue of $2.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.41 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.08 EPS. Global Payments has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.600-6.666 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Global Payments Inc. will post 11.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Global Payments Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 26th. Investors of record on Friday, December 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.3%. Global Payments’s payout ratio is presently 14.04%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Global Payments news, Director Patricia A. Watson purchased 1,331 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 7th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $75.06 per share, with a total value of $99,904.86. Following the transaction, the director owned 2,651 shares in the company, valued at approximately $198,984.06. This trade represents a 100.83% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Connie D. Mcdaniel sold 4,464 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.81, for a total value of $347,343.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 30,014 shares in the company, valued at $2,335,389.34. This trade represents a 12.95% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 1.01% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.