Marshall Financial Group LLC Increases Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Marshall Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,003 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,108,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MA. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in Mastercard in the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new stake in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 74.0% in the third quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter worth about $54,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA opened at $533.50 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $489.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $524.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $497.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $537.70. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 178.27% and a net margin of 45.26%. Mastercard’s revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.39 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.57%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 23.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on MA shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $572.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $584.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $567.29.

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.