Fidelity National Information Services Inc., or FIS, paid $43 billion to buy Worldpay Inc. in a 2019 deal that turned sour.
While it won’t receive all of its money back, analysts said Jacksonville-based FIS is the winner in its deal to sell off its remaining 45% interest in Worldpay as part of an asset swap with Global Payments Inc.
After FIS sold its majority stake in Worldpay to private equity firm GTCR in early 2024, Global Payments agreed to buy all of Worldpay from FIS and GTCR in a deal announced April 17.
In connection with that deal, FIS is buying a credit processing business called Global Payments Issuer Solutions for $13.5 billion.
Worldpay is valued at $24.25 billion in the deal, much less than FIS paid for the merchant payment processing company, but analysts don’t think it’s a bargain for Global Payments.
“We are throwing in the towel on Global Payments as we think today’s announcement further complicates the story, elevates the execution risk, and pushes out the timeline for investors to gauge the potential for this asset to create shareholder value,” Keefe, Bruyette & Woods analyst Vasundhara Govil said in a research note.
“We think this is a strong strategic deal for FIS as it is highly complementary in bringing them a strong credit issuer processing asset, which was missing from their portfolio of services, that they can offer to their bank clients,” she said.
“Overall, we view these deals as a homerun for FIS (clear synergies, improves asset quality plus simplifies story), while we see a long road ahead for Global Payments despite the Worldpay combination making strategic sense (levering up to buy a more cyclical asset ahead of a potential recession plus share loss narrative likely to only grow louder),” Raymond James analyst John Davis said in his note.
Global Payments’ stock dropped $14.66 to $69.46 April 17 after the announcement. FIS rose $5.94 to $74.58.
“The combination of these two transactions delivers important benefits to FIS and our shareholders,” FIS Chief Executive Stephanie Ferris said in a conference call with analysts.
Ferris said the addition of the credit processing business complements the company’s other financial technology offerings and adds a predictable flow of recurring revenue.
“FIS trading its minority stake in Worldpay for 100% of (Issuer Solutions) is an obvious decision, giving FIS a scale credit card processing capability that it lacked at a reasonable price, while creating a clean exit from the Worldpay hot potato challenge,” J.P. Morgan analyst Tien-tsin Huang said in a note.
“FIS completely exits the failed Worldpay acquisition and effectively completes its transition toward becoming a lower growth but more stable business. Issuer Solutions is a nice complement to its core bank tech operations,” said a note by Morningstar analyst Brett Horn.
Many analysts lowered their price targets on CSX Corp. after the Jacksonville-based railroad company reported earnings below expectations April 16, but none of them changed their ratings on the stock.
Raymond James analyst Patrick Tyler Brown maintained an “outperform rating,” saying in a research note he expects continued “operational and cultural improvements” that should translate to better results.
“We also remain intrigued by the possibilities with CEO (Joe) Hinrichs (ex rail customer) and his clear focus on customer service and the employee experience,” Brown said.
J.P. Morgan analyst Brian Ossenbeck maintained an “overweight” rating but said in his note he expects CSX to underperform as it deals with persistent service challenges.
“We are concerned that CSX’s network resilience has been partially impaired which could result in more frequent disruptions in the future and we still expect CSX will trade at a discount versus peers which have fewer self-inflicted headwinds when the volume outlook remains uncertain and volatile,” he said.
Susquehanna Financial analyst Bascome Majors said in his note he expects better results but it will take time.
“CSX’s unique 2025 challenges will become next year’s hurdle, and we remain patiently Positive as growth and sentiment both should improve into 2026,” he said.
BMO Capital Markets analyst Fadi Chamoun also advised patience.
“For patient/value investors, the stock represents an opportunity in our opinion as CSX has a strong pipeline of growth projects on its network and the company likely wins in a scenario of industrial near-shoring,” Chamoun said in his note.
Johnson & Johnson reported first-quarter sales at its Jacksonville-based vision products business rose 3.7% (adjusted for foreign currency rates) to $1.28 billion and contact lens sales rose 2.7% to $919 million.
Johnson & Johnson Vision makes contact lenses under the Acuvue brand at its Jacksonville headquarters and at a second manufacturing facility in Ireland, and makes eye care surgical products in other plants.
The company attributed the gains in contact lens sales to strategic price actions.
Officials of the New Jersey-based medical products giant said in an April 15 conference call it is estimating tariff-related costs of $400 million this year.
They said the tariffs would mainly impact its MedTech division, which includes the vision business, and they would largely impact business with China.
Johnson & Johnson’s media relations department did not respond to an emailed question asking whether it sells its contact lenses in China.
Chief Financial Officer Joseph Wolk said in the conference call that contractual agreements in place would make it difficult to adjust prices affected by tariffs.
“We’re very limited in terms of price leverage,” he said.
Johnson & Johnson has been expanding manufacturing facilities, including a $200 million investment plan launched in 2022 at its Jacksonville contact lens facility.
The company in March announced plans to invest $55 billion in the U.S. over the next four years.
“At the completion of this investment plan essentially all our advanced medicines that are used in the U.S. will be manufactured in the U.S.,” CEO Joaquin Duato said in the conference call.
However, Duato said those investments are not a response to possible tariffs but are the result of the 2017 Tax Cuts & Jobs Act.
“If what you want is to build manufacturing capacity in the U.S., both in MedTech and in pharmaceuticals, the most effective answer is not tariffs but tax policy,” he said.
Student loan company Nelnet Inc. closed its Jacksonville operations center in 2010, putting 250 people out of work.
However, the Nebraska-based company is returning, announcing April 14 it acquired Jacksonville-based Next Gen Web Solutions.
Next Gen, founded in 2008, provides solutions to streamline and automate administrative processes for the higher education market, Nelnet said.
The business will become part of the company’s Nelnet Campus Commerce unit within its Nelnet Business Services division.
“The acquisition of Next Gen and its incorporation into Nelnet Campus Commerce supports our focus on diversifying revenue streams while bringing needed solutions to the higher education market,” Nelnet Campus Commerce President Jackie Strohbehn said in a news release.
Nelnet first came to Jacksonville in 2000 when it acquired a company called InTuition Holdings Inc.
However, the company decided to close the Jacksonville facility after President Barack Obama took office in 2009 and proposed cutting government subsidies for private companies making student loans.
Nelnet’s business today consists of consumer lending, loan servicing, payments and technology, with a focus on education-related activities.
The company’s revenue was about $1.4 billion last year.
Terms of the Next Gen deal were not announced.
Stifel analyst J. Bruce Chan is expecting disappointing first-quarter earnings reports from most trucking companies but he is optimistic about the outlook for one – Jacksonville-based Proficient Auto Logistics
“For now, we remain cautious on the Truckload group, with the exception of Proficient Auto Logistics, which we believe has a significant idiosyncratic tailwind in the impending bankruptcy of a major competitor in its market niche,” Chan said in an April 14 earnings preview report on the industry.
Proficient transports automobiles from manufacturers to dealers and the competitor Chan referenced was likely Kansas City, Missouri-based Jack Cooper Transport, which shut operations in February.
He maintained a “buy” rating on Proficient but rated five other trucking companies at “hold,” including Jacksonville-based Landstar System Inc.
“Heading into 2025, we were Hold-rated on the Truckload group, given what we perceived as a greater potential demand risk than typical into a cycle recovery, principally because we believe this cycle was more supply-driven in nature. And now, tariff rhetoric and macro concerns have driven valuations down substantially,” Chan said.
“There was some episodic pre-tariff front-loading in 1Q25 but not enough to offset sub-seasonal demand from macro malaise and extended weather disruptions; we are lowering our estimates for most of the group,” he said.
Landstar is scheduled to report earnings April 29 and Proficient is scheduled for May 7.
Dream Finders Homes Inc. said it closed on its acquisition of Alliant National Title Insurance Company Inc. on April 18.
The Jacksonville-based homebuilding company announced the deal in October but has not disclosed terms of the agreement.
Dream Finders said Alliant underwrites title insurance policies in 32 states and Washington, D.C., and significantly expands the company’s financial services capabilities.
“This partnership creates significant value for both Alliant National and Dream Finders as a result of further vertical integration and additional service offerings to our stakeholders,” CEO Patrick Zalupski said in a news release.