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Here's Why You Should Retain Global Payments (GPN) Stock Now

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Global Payments Inc. (GPN - Free Report) is well-poised for growth, courtesy of consistent top-line growth, solid segmental performances, several acquisitions and partnerships and a strong cash balance. Optimistic guidance for 2022 will act as a tailwind for the stock.

Zacks Rank & Price Performance

Presently, Global Payments carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

The stock has inched up 1.2% year to date against the industry’s decline of 0.3%. Meanwhile, the Business Services sector and the S&P Index declined by 10.4% and 3.3%, respectively.

Zacks Investment Research
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Robust Growth Prospects

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2022 earnings is pegged at $9.5, indicating an increase of 16.7% on 9.2% higher revenues of $8.5 billion. The consensus mark for 2023 earnings stands at $11.2, suggesting growth of 17.2% on 8.8% higher revenues of $9.2 billion.

Impressive Earnings Surprise History

Global Payments boasts a solid earnings surprise history, wherein the bottom line outpaced estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 3.40%.

Solid 2022 Guidance

Global Payments has a solid 2022 guidance in place, which should instill investors’ confidence in the stock. Adjusted net revenues are anticipated to be between $8.42 billion and $8.50 billion. The guidance indicates an improvement of 9-10% from the 2021-end reported figure. The mid-point of the new guidance lies in line with the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $8.5 billion.

Adjusted earnings per share is projected within $9.45-$9.67 in 2022. The guidance suggests growth of 16-19% from the reported figure at 2021 end. The mid-point of the same lies higher than the consensus mark of $9.52 per share.

Business Tailwinds

Revenues of Global Payments have been gaining on the back of strong performances across Merchant Solutions, Issuer Solutions, and Business and Consumer Solutions units. Uptick in transaction volumes stemming from continued economic recovery and widespread utilization of  digital payment solutions are likely to provide a boost to GPN’s revenue growth in the days ahead.

Global Payments has frequently resorted to acquisitions and partnerships to bolster its capabilities and geographical presence. Zego, a real estate technology company, was one of the notable buyouts last year. The payments technology company invested around $963 million in 2021 to pursue other strategic business acquisitions. Several contract wins and renewals received by Global Payments have strengthened partners’ and customers’ trust in the company’s capabilities.

GPN has made continued investments in technology advancements, which augurs well amid a booming digital payments space. Such upgradations can result in cost savings and drive a company’s margin in the days ahead. Meanwhile, Global Payments will continue to benefit from the expense synergies stemming from the Total System Services (TSYS) buyout.

GPN boasts of a strong cash balance and robust cash-generating abilities. Global Payments exited 2021, witnessing year-over-year growth of 1.7% in cash and cash equivalents. GPN generated cash from operations worth $2.8 billion last year, which improved 20.2% year over year. These tailwinds have enabled the payments technology company to undertake numerous growth-linked initiatives and prudently deploy capital. In February 2022, management sanctioned an increase in the existing share repurchase program of the company, thereby taking the total amount of authorization to $2 billion.

Stocks to Consider

Some better-ranked stocks from the business services space include Cantaloupe, Inc. (CTLP - Free Report) , International Money Express, Inc. (IMXI - Free Report)   and WEX Inc. (WEX - Free Report) . While Cantaloupe sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), International Money Express and WEX carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

The bottom line of Cantaloupe outpaced estimates in each of the last four quarters, the average surprise being 108.33%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for CTLP’s 2022 earnings suggests an improvement of 50%, while the same for revenues suggests growth of 23% from the corresponding year-ago reported figures. The consensus mark for Cantaloupe’s 2022 earnings has moved north by 12.5% in the past 60 days.

International Money Express has an average surprise of 16.37%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for IMXI’s 2022 earnings indicates a 12.9% improvement from the prior-year figure, while the same for revenues suggests growth of 17.9% from the corresponding year-ago reported figures. The consensus mark for International Money Express’ 2022 earnings has moved north by 12.2% in the past 30 days.

The bottom line of WEX outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate in each of the last four quarters, the average surprise being 9.96%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for WEX’s 2022 earnings suggests a 27.4% improvement from the prior-year figure, while the same for revenues suggests a 13.4% rise from the prior-year figure. The consensus mark for WEX’s 2022 earnings has moved north by 1.9% in the past 30 days.

Shares of International Money Express and WEX have gained 30.4% and 27.3%, respectively, year to date. Meanwhile, Cantaloupe stock has lost 22.4% in the same time frame.

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