Global Payments Inc. (GPN) Earnings & Analysis

Latest quarter

Global Payments reported Q2 FY2026 revenue of $3.3 billion, up 68.6% from $2.0 billion a year earlier. The company’s revenue, as the consensus counts it, was $3.2 billion versus consensus revenue of $3.2 billion, a 0.40% shortfall. Adjusted EPS, as the consensus counts it, was $3.46 versus consensus adjusted EPS of $3.45, a 0.29% beat.

The filing attributes the revenue increase primarily to the Worldpay acquisition, which added revenue across the Enterprise, Platforms and SMB segments. The filing says Enterprise and Platforms operating income rose on incremental income from Worldpay, while SMB operating income declined because of amortization related to acquired Worldpay intangible assets. Global Payments reported gross margin of 61.0%, down from 74.5%, and operating margin of 10.2%, down from 20.0%, as amortization and acquisition and integration expenses increased. The company reported free cash flow of $427.0 million, compared with $665.4 million a year earlier. The company’s 68.6% revenue growth came above its Q2 FY2026 revenue-growth guide of 1.00%.

Adjusted EPS is the figure the consensus estimates, not the GAAP EPS above.

What management said on the call

Cameron Bready said adjusted net revenue grew 4% on a normalized basis, with an approximately 100 basis point headwind from the Middle East conflict’s effect on the travel portfolio. Josh Whipple said consumer spending trends remained resilient through the quarter, while reduced travel-sector volumes partially offset them.

Bready said the Worldpay integration had completed operating-model design, established its leadership structure and defined a target technology architecture for the combined business. He said the company also aligned its commercial organization around SMB, Enterprise and Platforms. Whipple said the company expected adjusted operating margins to expand more meaningfully in the second half as it realizes additional integration cost savings.

On demand and pricing, Bready said new merchant locations per quota-carrying sales professional had increased 30% since the beginning of the year, while new-customer yields increased 75% year over year. Whipple said Enterprise recorded normalized growth of 7%, despite an approximately 400 basis point Middle East headwind, and that card-not-present revenue grew at a low-double-digit rate. He said Platforms generated normalized growth of 7%, led by embedded payments, while SMB generated normalized growth of 4%.

Bready said Global Payments was investing in product features, AI and distribution for Genius, whose revenue contribution remained relatively modest. He said the company was also conducting agentic-commerce pilots with AI platforms and global retailers, but did not quantify their revenue contribution or timing.

Analysts pressed management on the persistence of the Middle East travel effect and the outlook by business. Bready said travel capacity and forward bookings remained significantly below pre-conflict levels, and that the company assumed the effect would continue through year-end. Whipple said second-half margins were expected to be around 43.0%, while Bready said fourth-quarter results could be somewhat better than the third quarter but did not quantify the difference. Bready also said Genius was a modest part of SMB and that its adoption focus was on new sales channels and voluntary customer upgrades rather than a broad conversion campaign.

Guidance

Global Payments lowered its FY2026 normalized constant-currency adjusted-net-revenue-growth outlook excluding dispositions to 4.00% to 5.00%, from its earlier expectation of approximately 5.00%. Josh Whipple said the company now expects adjusted EPS of $13.60 to $13.80, versus its prior $13.80 to $14.00 range. Whipple said the revised outlook assumes the Middle East conflict’s travel-portfolio impact continues through the remainder of 2026.