AM Investment Strategies LLC Sells 199 Shares of Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN)

AM Investment Strategies LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) by 1.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 13,974 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 199 shares during the period. AM Investment Strategies LLC’s holdings in Global Payments were worth $1,775,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of GPN. Park Place Capital Corp raised its holdings in Global Payments by 14.6% in the third quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 1,352 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $156,000 after buying an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Caprock Group LLC purchased a new position in Global Payments in the third quarter worth about $288,000. CX Institutional purchased a new position in Global Payments in the third quarter worth about $211,000. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. raised its holdings in Global Payments by 1.5% in the third quarter. Coronation Fund Managers Ltd. now owns 455,567 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $52,568,000 after buying an additional 6,667 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SS&H Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Global Payments in the third quarter worth about $571,000. 89.76% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Global Payments Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:GPN traded down $2.84 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $124.63. 1,196,471 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,156,823. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. The business’s fifty day moving average is $129.38 and its two-hundred day moving average is $124.58. Global Payments Inc. has a one year low of $95.12 and a one year high of $141.77. The stock has a market cap of $31.79 billion, a PE ratio of 32.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.96.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 14th. The business services provider reported $2.65 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by $0.01. Global Payments had a net margin of 10.22% and a return on equity of 11.44%. The firm had revenue of $2.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.18 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.30 earnings per share. Global Payments’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Global Payments Inc. will post 10.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Global Payments Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Friday, March 15th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 14th. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.80%. Global Payments’s dividend payout ratio is 26.46%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Mizuho reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $129.00 price objective on shares of Global Payments in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $170.00 to $160.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $154.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $135.00 to $155.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $145.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, February 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and twenty-one have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $151.92.

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.