Picton Mahoney Asset Management Purchases 4,343 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Picton Mahoney Asset Management grew its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 12.0% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 40,634 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,343 shares during the quarter. Picton Mahoney Asset Management’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $21,396,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Addison Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 493 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $260,000 after buying an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,135 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,651,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. now owns 475 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $250,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Augustine Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,797 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $946,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Finally, Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC now owns 2,245 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,182,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently commented on MA. Macquarie lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned 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 price target of $606.11.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Mastercard stock opened at $527.87 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The company has a market capitalization of $481.27 billion, a PE ratio of 38.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $545.38 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $522.44. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $428.86 and a twelve month high of $582.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted 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%. Research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.89%.

Mastercard announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.