Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Stock Position Lowered by BCS Wealth Management

BCS Wealth Management lowered its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 823 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 35 shares during the quarter. BCS Wealth Management’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $433,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MA. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the second quarter worth $34,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the second quarter valued at $35,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 74.0% in the 3rd quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.7 %

MA stock opened at $508.49 on Wednesday. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $524.14 and a 200 day simple moving average of $493.23. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $425.48 and a 52 week high of $537.70. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. The company has a market cap of $466.71 billion, a PE ratio of 38.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The company had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $3.39 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors 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 0.60%. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $584.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $580.00 to $618.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Oppenheimer reduced their target price on Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $566.63.

Mastercard Profile

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.