Alberta Investment Management Corp Boosts Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Alberta Investment Management Corp raised its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 168.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 39,155 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,555 shares during the period. Alberta Investment Management Corp’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $20,618,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Swedbank AB grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 14.8% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,874,568 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $925,662,000 after acquiring an additional 241,297 shares during the last quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 13.9% in the third quarter. Trilogy Capital Inc. now owns 893 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $441,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares during the period. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its position in Mastercard by 1.2% during the third quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 4,480 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,212,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the period. Evernest Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Mastercard by 1.4% in the third quarter. Evernest Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,589 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,772,000 after buying an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Mastercard by 5.8% in the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 563 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $278,000 after buying an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.6 %

MA opened at $567.90 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $521.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The business has a 50-day moving average of $537.10 and a two-hundred day moving average of $511.77. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $576.94.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. On average, research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MA has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 price objective (up previously from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

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.