How The Parts Add Up: ILCG Targets $94
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Oct 14 2024
0mins
Should l Buy GPN?
Source: NASDAQ.COM
ETF Analyst Target Price Analysis: The iShares Morningstar Growth ETF (ILCG) has an implied analyst target price of $93.96 per unit, indicating a potential upside of 10.17% from its current trading price of $85.29.
Notable Holdings with Upside Potential: Key holdings within ILCG, such as Global Payments Inc, Bruker Corp, and PURE Storage Inc, show significant upside potential based on analysts' target prices, suggesting optimism about their future performance.
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Analyst Views on GPN
Wall Street analysts forecast GPN stock price to rise
16 Analyst Rating
6 Buy
10 Hold
0 Sell
Moderate Buy
Current: 69.630
Low
75.00
Averages
102.82
High
135.00
Current: 69.630
Low
75.00
Averages
102.82
High
135.00
About GPN
Global Payments Inc. is a payment technology and software company that powers commerce for businesses of all sizes worldwide. The Company helps businesses grow by delivering solutions that enable payment acceptance, smarter operations and client experiences - online, in store and everywhere in between. Through its Merchant Solutions business, it provides payments technology and software solutions globally to primarily small- and-medium sized businesses and select mid-market and enterprise customers. Its comprehensive offerings include authorization, settlement and funding services, customer support, chargeback resolution, reconciliation and dispute management services, terminal rental, sales and deployment, payment security services, consolidated billing and reporting. Its Worldpay is a payments technology and solutions company. It serves various industries, including restaurants, retail, services, sports and entertainment, K-12 education, higher education, and property management.
About the author

Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
- Strong Financial Performance: Global Payments reported approximately 5.5% normalized adjusted net revenue growth in Q1 2026, with adjusted earnings per share of $2.96, indicating successful integration progress post-Worldpay acquisition and exceeding management expectations, thereby boosting market confidence.
- Shareholder Return Initiatives: The company returned over $600 million to shareholders in Q1 and announced a new $500 million accelerated share repurchase program, reflecting management's confidence in future cash flows while enhancing shareholder value.
- Operational Efficiency Gains: Genius platform bookings increased by over 25% sequentially and nearly doubled year-over-year, with client yields rising by over 30%, which not only reflects market acceptance of the product but also has the potential to drive future revenue growth and market share expansion.
- Robust Outlook: Management reaffirmed the full-year adjusted earnings per share guidance of $13.80 to $14.00, despite anticipating a potential 100 basis point headwind in Q2 from the Middle East conflict and softer tax payment volumes, demonstrating confidence in long-term growth prospects.
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- Quarterly Dividend Announcement: Global Payments has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, consistent with previous distributions, indicating the company's ongoing ability to maintain stable cash flow, which is likely to attract income-seeking investors.
- Dividend Yield: The forward yield of 1.37% reflects the company's appeal in the current market environment, potentially enhancing investor interest in its stock, especially in a low-yield market.
- Dividend Payment Timeline: The dividend will be payable on June 26, with a record date of June 12 and an ex-dividend date also on June 12, providing investors with a clear decision-making window that may stimulate trading activity in the short term.
- Financial Performance Highlights: Global Payments reported a non-GAAP EPS of $2.96 for Q1, beating expectations by $0.15, with revenue of $2.86 billion exceeding forecasts by $40 million, showcasing the company's strong performance in profitability and revenue growth, which may further bolster market confidence in its future growth prospects.
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- Earnings Beat: Global Payments reported Q1 adjusted EPS of $2.96, a 10% year-over-year increase that surpassed analyst expectations of $2.83, indicating robust performance in the payments sector.
- Significant Revenue Growth: The company achieved Q1 revenue of $2.97 billion, up 63.1% year-over-year and exceeding the average analyst estimate of $2.84 billion, demonstrating sustained competitive strength in the market.
- Shareholder Return Plan: Global Payments announced a $500 million accelerated share repurchase plan and expects to return over $2 billion to shareholders by 2026 through buybacks and dividends, enhancing shareholder value and market confidence.
- Optimistic Future Outlook: The company anticipates adjusted EPS for 2026 to be between $13.80 and $14.00, with expected normalized operating margin expansion of approximately 150 basis points, reflecting management's confidence in future growth.
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- Profit Growth: Global Payments reported an adjusted profit of $808.9 million for Q1, translating to $2.96 per share, which marks a significant increase from $665.3 million and $2.69 per share in the same period last year, demonstrating the company's resilience amid economic uncertainty.
- Revenue Surge: The company experienced a 63.1% year-over-year revenue increase, reaching $2.97 billion in Q1, reflecting steady consumer spending despite challenges posed by geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and economic volatility.
- Positive Market Reaction: Although the stock has declined by 10.2% this year, shares rose approximately 2% in premarket trading, indicating investor recognition and confidence in the company's financial performance.
- Full-Year Outlook Reaffirmed: The company reaffirmed its full-year earnings outlook during the earnings release, further bolstering market confidence in its future performance and reflecting management's optimistic view on sustained growth.
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- Earnings Beat: Global Payments reported a Q1 non-GAAP EPS of $2.96, exceeding expectations by $0.15, which reflects strong profitability and boosts investor confidence in the company's performance.
- Significant Revenue Growth: The company achieved $2.86 billion in revenue for Q1, marking a 29.4% year-over-year increase and surpassing estimates by $40 million, indicating robust market competitiveness and sustained customer demand.
- Optimistic 2026 Outlook: For the full year 2026, Global Payments anticipates normalized revenue growth of approximately 5% and adjusted EPS between $13.80 and $14.00, showcasing management's confidence in future performance, which may attract more investor interest.
- Margin Expansion Expectations: The company expects an adjusted operating margin expansion of approximately 150 basis points for 2026, which could enhance profitability and market competitiveness, potentially leading to positive stock price movements.
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- Earnings Announcement: Global Payments (GPN) is scheduled to release its Q1 earnings report on May 6 before the market opens, with consensus EPS estimate at $2.81, reflecting a 4.5% year-over-year increase, which could impact stock performance in the short term.
- Revenue Expectations: The expected revenue for Q1 is $2.82 billion, representing a 27.6% year-over-year growth, and achieving this would indicate strong market performance, potentially attracting more investor interest.
- Performance Forecast Adjustments: Over the past two years, GPN has beaten EPS estimates 63% of the time and revenue estimates 50% of the time, demonstrating stability in profitability, although recent EPS estimates have seen one upward revision and 18 downward revisions.
- Long-term Target Setting: Global Payments has outlined an EPS target of $13.80 to $14 for 2026 while advancing the integration of Worldpay and AI initiatives, indicating confidence in future growth and strategic positioning.
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