Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) is Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s 4th Largest Position

Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 143,058 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 2,828 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up approximately 3.3% of Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 4th biggest holding. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $75,330,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in Mastercard during the second quarter worth $34,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 74.0% during the 3rd quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MA has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup increased their price objective on Mastercard from $572.00 to $584.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Macquarie boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $575.00 price target (up from $565.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $564.00 to $654.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $580.00 to $618.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $566.63.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA stock opened at $527.02 on Thursday. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $537.70. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $524.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $496.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The firm has a market cap of $483.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.87, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.10.

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

Mastercard declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.00%.

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.