Schwarz Dygos Wheeler Investment Advisors LLC Has $795,000 Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Schwarz Dygos Wheeler Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 6.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,510 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. Schwarz Dygos Wheeler Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $795,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 483.3% during the 4th quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MA. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Macquarie lifted their price target on Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna boosted their price target on Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 target price (up from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

Mastercard Price Performance

NYSE:MA opened at $546.98 on Monday. 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 Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $582.23. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $545.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $521.14. The stock has a market cap of $498.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.38, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results 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%. Analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is presently 21.89%.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.