Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Position Lifted by United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund

United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund lifted its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 176,584 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,900 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for approximately 3.6% of United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund’s holdings, making the stock its 8th largest position. United Super Pty Ltd in its capacity as Trustee for the Construction & Building Unions Superannuation Fund’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $92,984,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Truvestments Capital LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 62.5% during the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust purchased a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $544.74 on Wednesday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $428.86 and a 52-week high of $582.23. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $549.05 and its 200-day moving average price is $525.90. 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 cap of $496.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.22, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.89%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MA shares. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Macquarie increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $635.00 price target (up previously from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average 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.