Piper Jaffray reiterated a Neutral rating on Global Payments (NYSE: GPN), and raised the price target to $76.00 (from $73.00), following the company's 3Q earnings report. GPN reported EPS of $0.70, beating the consensus estimate $0.67. GPN’s strategy of direct distribution across its global platform continues to drive strong growth and margin performance that should be further enhanced by the HPY acquisition.

Analyst Jason Deleeuw commented, "GPN beat consensus net revenue by 1% and delivered cash EPS of $0.70 vs. consensus of $0.67. Constant currency net revenue growth remained strong at 11%, while margin expectations continue to ratchet higher. GPN’s strategy of direct distribution across its global platform continues to drive strong growth and margin performance that should be further enhanced by the HPY acquisition. We raise our FY ‘16/’17/’18 cash EPS estimates from $2.94/$3.43/$4.05 to $2.97/$3.47/$4.10 driven by greater margin expansion and lower interest expense on the debt funding for HPY. Our price target moves from $73 to $76 based on our new fiscal 2017 EV/EBITDA estimates. Our Neutral rating reflects our confidence in GPN’s growth strategy balanced by what we believe is a fair valuation multiple that limits potential upside vs. other names in our coverage universe."

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Shares of Global Payments closed at $70.86 yesterday.