Discovery Capital Management LLC CT Invests $30.74 Million in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN)

Discovery Capital Management LLC CT acquired a new stake in Global Payments Inc. (NYSE:GPN) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 274,300 shares of the business services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $30,738,000. Global Payments comprises approximately 2.1% of Discovery Capital Management LLC CT’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in GPN. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Global Payments in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Global Payments in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. bought a new position in shares of Global Payments during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. LRI Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Global Payments by 94.4% during the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 517 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Manchester Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Global Payments by 177.5% in the 4th quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 469 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $53,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.76% of the company’s stock.

Global Payments Stock Performance

NYSE GPN opened at $98.09 on Tuesday. Global Payments Inc. has a 52-week low of $90.99 and a 52-week high of $133.63. The stock has a market cap of $24.12 billion, a PE ratio of 15.87, a P/E/G ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.04. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $103.51 and a 200-day moving average of $107.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.93 and a current ratio of 0.97.

Global Payments (NYSE:GPN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The business services provider reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.98 by ($0.14). Global Payments had a return on equity of 12.21% and a net margin of 15.54%. The firm had revenue of $2.29 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.31 billion. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Global Payments Inc. will post 11.89 EPS for the current year.

Global Payments Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th were issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 14th. Global Payments’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 16.18%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently commented on GPN. Bank of America reduced their target price on Global Payments from $156.00 to $149.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Global Payments from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Global Payments from $166.00 to $163.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 14th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Global Payments from $135.00 to $125.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of Global Payments from $140.00 to $135.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Global Payments presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $134.10.

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.