Kentucky Retirement Systems Has $29.85 Million Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Kentucky Retirement Systems cut its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 56,696 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 781 shares during the quarter. Mastercard makes up about 0.9% of Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Mastercard were worth $29,854,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MA. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Mastercard by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,135 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,651,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. increased its position in Mastercard by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. now owns 475 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $250,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Augustine Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Mastercard by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,797 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $946,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Goldstein Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC now owns 1,516 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $749,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, Community Bank N.A. grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 2,190 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,081,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of MA opened at $563.61 on Friday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $538.41 and a 200 day moving average of $512.53. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $576.94. The firm has a market cap of $517.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.89%.

Mastercard declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. TD Cowen raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. DZ Bank upgraded Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 target price on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Four equities research 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $606.11.

Mastercard Company 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.