Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Stock Position Raised by Ritholtz Wealth Management

Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,004 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 660 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $9,480,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of MA. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the second quarter worth $1,155,000. Sienna Gestion raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2,869.9% during the second quarter. Sienna Gestion now owns 24,264 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $10,699,000 after acquiring an additional 23,447 shares in the last quarter. Kendall Capital Management raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.8% during the second quarter. Kendall Capital Management now owns 6,101 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,692,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Mathes Company Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.3% during the second quarter. Mathes Company Inc. now owns 9,386 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $4,141,000 after acquiring an additional 215 shares in the last quarter. Finally, WCG Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 8.3% during the second quarter. WCG Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 13,093 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $5,776,000 after acquiring an additional 1,001 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of MA opened at $523.08 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $480.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $425.48 and a 12 month high of $537.70. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $524.17 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $493.43.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.39 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 19.97%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MA has been the subject of several recent research reports. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Monday, November 25th. KeyCorp raised their target price on Mastercard from $515.00 to $580.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on Mastercard from $580.00 to $618.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Mizuho raised their target price on Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on Mastercard from $572.00 to $584.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $566.63.

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.