Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Purchased by Boston Financial Mangement LLC

Boston Financial Mangement LLC grew its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 134,136 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 159 shares during the quarter. Mastercard accounts for about 2.1% of Boston Financial Mangement LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest holding. Boston Financial Mangement LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $70,632,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. First Bank & Trust boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. First Bank & Trust now owns 7,931 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,176,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. Hardy Reed LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 5,015 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,641,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the period. Advyzon Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $606,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 5.6% in the fourth quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 662,219 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $348,705,000 after buying an additional 35,208 shares during the period. Finally, Wealth Alliance boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 4,652 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,450,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of MA opened at $568.97 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $522.22 billion, a PE ratio of 40.96, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s 50-day moving average is $537.79 and its 200-day moving average is $512.17. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $576.94. 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 (NYSE:MA) last issued 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 net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. Equities analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

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

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.89%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Tigress Financial increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $685.00 and gave the stock a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley reduced 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. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus 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.