Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) Short Interest Update

Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) was the target of a large increase in short interest in December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totaling 10,065,456 shares, an increase of 39.9% from the November 30th total of 7,194,623 shares. Approximately 4.3% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 2,620,967 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.8 days. Based on an average daily volume of 2,620,967 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.8 days. Approximately 4.3% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Global Payments Stock Down 2.4%

NYSE GPN traded down $1.88 on Wednesday, hitting $77.43. 2,248,707 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,451,731. The company has a market cap of $18.33 billion, a PE ratio of 10.88, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.82. Global Payments has a 12 month low of $65.93 and a 12 month high of $115.19. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $78.76 and a 200-day moving average of $82.01. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, November 4th. The business services provider reported $3.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.23 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.43 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.41 billion. Global Payments had a net margin of 19.68% and a return on equity of 12.66%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $3.08 earnings per share. Global Payments has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.600-6.666 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Global Payments will post 11.89 earnings per share for the current year.

Global Payments Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th were given a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 12th. Global Payments’s dividend payout ratio is presently 14.04%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have commented on GPN. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on Global Payments from $85.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 24th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Global Payments from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 5th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Global Payments from $90.00 to $85.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Global Payments from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 5th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Global Payments in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $102.29.

Insider Buying and Selling at Global Payments

In other Global Payments news, Director Connie D. Mcdaniel sold 4,464 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.81, for a total value of $347,343.84. Following the sale, the director 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP David M. Sheffield sold 2,016 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.41, for a total transaction of $164,122.56. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 14,438 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,175,397.58. This trade represents a 12.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last 90 days, insiders acquired 14,723 shares of company stock worth $1,186,772 and sold 18,080 shares worth $1,439,350. 1.01% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Global Payments

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. North Star Investment Management Corp. boosted its stake in Global Payments by 242.2% during the 3rd quarter. North Star Investment Management Corp. now owns 308 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Global Payments during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. SouthState Bank Corp bought a new stake in shares of Global Payments in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. REAP Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Global Payments in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Finally, LRI Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 53.4% in the second quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 382 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.76% of the company’s stock.

About Global Payments

Global Payments Inc (NYSE: GPN) is a worldwide provider of payment technology and software solutions that enables commerce for merchants, issuers and enterprises. The company develops and operates payment processing networks, point-of-sale systems and cloud-based software that facilitate electronic transactions across in-store, online and mobile channels. Its services span merchant acquiring, payment gateway services, omnichannel commerce platforms, and solutions for recurring and subscription billing.

Global Payments offers a range of products and services including integrated payment terminals and point-of-sale software, e-commerce and gateway technologies, fraud prevention and tokenization tools, and business analytics and reporting.