Five Oceans Advisors Sells 263 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Five Oceans Advisors lessened its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 13.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,657 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 263 shares during the period. Five Oceans Advisors’ holdings in Mastercard were worth $873,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter valued at $54,000. Raelipskie Partnership lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 120.0% during the 3rd quarter. Raelipskie Partnership now owns 110 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the third quarter worth $55,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have weighed in on MA. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. TD Cowen increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $595.64.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA opened at $555.63 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $528.28 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $501.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $509.97 billion, a PE ratio of 42.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $576.94.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released 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 return on equity of 178.27% and a net margin of 45.26%. On average, analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.00%.

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