Wealth Alliance Advisory Group LLC Sells 37 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Wealth Alliance Advisory Group LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 2,298 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 37 shares during the period. Wealth Alliance Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,210,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Goldstein Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC now owns 1,516 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $749,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Community Bank N.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 2,190 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,081,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC now owns 1,398 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $690,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Boltwood Capital Management raised its holdings in Mastercard by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 2,055 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,082,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, Traveka Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC now owns 1,478 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $778,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.4 %

MA opened at $525.22 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $524.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $494.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $482.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.73, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $427.45 and a fifty-two week high of $537.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 178.27% and a net margin of 45.26%. Mastercard’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $3.39 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.97%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Mastercard from $580.00 to $618.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. UBS Group upped their price objective on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $572.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $540.00 to $605.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $566.63.

About Mastercard

Mastercard Incorporated, a technology company, provides transaction processing and other payment-related products and services in the United States and internationally. The company offers integrated products and value-added services for account holders, merchants, financial institutions, digital partners, businesses, governments, and other organizations, such as programs that enable issuers to provide consumers with credits to defer payments; payment products and solutions that allow its customers to access funds in deposit and other accounts; prepaid programs services; and commercial credit, debit, and prepaid payment products and solutions.