Shift4 Payments is the IBD Stock Of The Day as the financial technology company wins price target hikes for FOUR stock.
On the stock market today, FOUR stock slipped a fraction to close at 74.72. Shift4 stock has gained about 2% in 2024. FOUR stock has climbed 25% over the past 52 weeks.
Allentown, Pa.-based digital payments processor Shift4 gets most of its revenue from customers in the hotel and restaurant industries as well as casinos. The company has expanded into sports stadiums, airlines and charities, as well as food and beverage companies.
FOUR stock holds an entry point of 76.51 from a long consolidation.
The relative strength line, while not at all-time highs, is at a multi-month high.
FOUR Stock: Finaro Deal Closes
The relative strength line has been improving since Shift4 on Oct. 26 closed the $575 million acquisition of Finaro. It's a Pan-European e-commerce platform with banking licenses in Europe, Japan and Hong Kong.
Truist Securities on Friday hiked its price target on Shift4, calling the company a market share gainer.
Further, Truist analyst Andrew Jefferies raised his price target to 100 from 75. He also cited "strong preliminary 2024 guidance."
"We expect Shift4 will deliver mid-40% organic end-to-end transaction volume growth and low-20% organic revenue growth in 2024," he said in a report.
"When we think about 2024 and 2025, we are excited about the company's Venues business, which we see as responsible for powering significantly faster-than-expected organic volume growth," Jefferies added. "Although these large stadium and ticketing customers blend down yield, they are critical to gross profit and EBITDA growth. We are also constructive on Finaro, the recently acquired cross-border payments company.
Global Payments Shot Down Acquisition Talk
Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs on Thursday hiked its price target on Shift4 stock to 90 from 76.
Global Payments in December shot down reports that it is mulling an acquisition of Shift4.
Chief Executive Jared Isaacman controls more than 80% of Shift4's voting power and 35% of the company.
Shift4 went public in June 2020. Some analysts have speculated about Isaacman taking the company private.
Also, Shift4 recently purchased sports stadium payment processor Appetize for $100 million.
At the end of 2022, Shift4 launched its next-generation Sky Tab restaurant payment system. Sky Tab competes with Toast, Block's Square business and Fiserv's Clover.
In addition, FOUR stock holds an IBD Composite Rating of 94, according to IBD Stock Checkup.
FOUR Stock: Technical Ratings
IBD's Composite Rating combines five separate proprietary ratings into one easy-to-use rating. Also, the best growth stocks have a Composite Rating of 90 or better.
Shift4 stock owns an Accumulation/Distribution Rating of A-minus. That rating analyzes price and volume changes in a stock over the past 13 weeks of trading. Its current rating indicates more funds are buying than selling.
The rating, on a scale of A+ to E, measures institutional buying and selling in a stock. A+ signifies heavy institutional buying; E means heavy selling. Think of the C grade as neutral.
Meanwhile, third-quarter adjusted profit rose 86% to 82 cents. That topped consensus estimates of 67 cents. Revenue climbed 23% to $675.4 million, missing estimates by 4%.
But Shift4's adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization rose 46% to $125 million, topping estimates by 7%.
Follow Reinhardt Krause on X, formerly called Twitter, @reinhardtk_tech for updates on artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and cloud computing.
