Trinity Financial Advisors LLC Acquires 140 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Trinity Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 24.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 713 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 140 shares during the quarter. Trinity Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $372,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 2nd quarter worth $35,000. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 74.0% during the third quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of Mastercard stock traded down $10.12 during trading on Friday, reaching $505.52. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,799,509 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,321,701. The company has a market cap of $463.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.24, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $524.15 and its two-hundred day moving average is $491.44. 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.

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

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 paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This is a positive change from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 23.00%.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock 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 usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MA has been the topic of several research reports. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Mastercard from $580.00 to $618.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Mastercard from $480.00 to $509.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $562.76.

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.