RD Lewis Holdings Inc. Invests $1 Million in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

RD Lewis Holdings Inc. acquired a new position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,780 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,002,000. Mastercard comprises 1.1% of RD Lewis Holdings Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest holding.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Swedbank AB grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 14.8% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,874,568 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $925,662,000 after buying an additional 241,297 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,031,915 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,497,160,000 after acquiring an additional 138,842 shares during the period. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Clarkston Capital Partners LLC now owns 41,799 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $20,641,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares during the period. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC now owns 8,144 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $4,021,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, Aljian Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter valued at about $1,506,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mastercard Stock Up 1.0 %

MA stock opened at $532.66 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $582.23. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $545.80 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $523.50. The firm has a market cap of $485.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.35, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10.

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

Mastercard announced that its board has approved 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 purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 21.89%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, DZ Bank raised shares of Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

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.