Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) is TCW Group Inc.’s 9th Largest Position

TCW Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 375,170 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,767 shares during the quarter. Mastercard accounts for 1.7% of TCW Group Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position. TCW Group Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $197,553,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. lifted its stake in Mastercard by 483.3% during the fourth quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. ST. Nicholas Private Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at about $9,791,000. Fisher Funds Management LTD purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at about $146,991,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Mastercard by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 5,256 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,768,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc lifted its stake in Mastercard by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc now owns 12,438 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $6,474,000 after buying an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of MA stock opened at $557.44 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $576.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The business’s 50 day moving average is $538.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $513.78. The company has a market cap of $508.22 billion, a PE ratio of 40.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10.

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

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

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 21.89%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MA. Macquarie upped their target price on Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp upped their target price on Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price 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.