Newport Capital Group LLC Lowers Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Newport Capital Group LLC decreased its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,735 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 55 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises approximately 0.7% of Newport Capital Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Newport Capital Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $914,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vontobel Holding Ltd. raised its holdings in Mastercard by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 1,956,787 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,030,385,000 after acquiring an additional 9,088 shares during the period. Bogart Wealth LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 19,387 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $10,209,000 after purchasing an additional 841 shares in the last quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Catalyst Financial Partners LLC now owns 3,268 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,721,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares in the last quarter. IMS Capital Management lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. IMS Capital Management now owns 2,354 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,240,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Buckhead Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Buckhead Capital Management LLC now owns 3,140 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,653,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.3 %

NYSE:MA opened at $566.02 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.29. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $576.94. The company has a 50-day moving average of $533.94 and a 200 day moving average of $508.28. The firm has a market cap of $519.51 billion, a PE ratio of 40.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share 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%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase 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 buy up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on MA. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective 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. KeyCorp boosted their target price on Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. 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 note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.