Miracle Mile Advisors LLC Acquires New Stake in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN)

Miracle Mile Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 1,521 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $203,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Global Payments in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Global Payments in the fourth quarter worth approximately $41,000. West Paces Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 54.5% during the first quarter. West Paces Advisors Inc. now owns 309 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its position in shares of Global Payments by 26.7% during the fourth quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 34,922 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 7,369 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new position in Global Payments in the 4th quarter worth approximately $50,000. 89.76% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Global Payments Stock Up 1.5 %

GPN opened at $97.09 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $24.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a current ratio of 0.92. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $104.55 and its 200 day moving average is $121.27. Global Payments Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $91.60 and a fifty-two week high of $141.77.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The business services provider reported $2.48 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.41 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $2.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.17 billion. Global Payments had a return on equity of 11.72% and a net margin of 13.40%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Global Payments Inc. will post 11.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Global Payments Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 14th were paid a $0.25 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.03%. Global Payments’s payout ratio is 19.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the company. StockNews.com lowered Global Payments from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 10th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price objective on Global Payments from $143.00 to $128.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Global Payments in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $100.00 target price on the stock. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Global Payments from $182.00 to $150.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Finally, Mizuho lowered their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $129.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $145.68.

Insider Buying and Selling at Global Payments

In other news, VP Andrea M. Carter sold 3,300 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.34, for a total value of $367,422.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 25,209 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,806,770.06. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.98% of the company’s stock.

Global Payments 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.