Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Position Boosted by Verdence Capital Advisors LLC

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 14,471 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 157 shares during the quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $7,620,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Swedbank AB grew its position in Mastercard by 14.8% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,874,568 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $925,662,000 after acquiring an additional 241,297 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 39.6% during the 3rd quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,474 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $728,000 after buying an additional 418 shares during the period. Alterna Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in Mastercard by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Alterna Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,385 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $684,000 after buying an additional 31 shares during the period. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 13.0% during the 3rd quarter. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,299 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $641,000 after buying an additional 149 shares during the period. Finally, Martin Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Martin Investment Management LLC now owns 39,191 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $19,353,000 after purchasing an additional 439 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Trading Down 3.5 %

Shares of MA opened at $554.88 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $505.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $544.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $519.37. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $582.23. 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 earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on Mastercard from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 price target (up from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.