Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Position Raised by CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC

CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 14.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,016 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the period. CFS Investment Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $535,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $533.50 on Friday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $524.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $497.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $537.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29. The firm 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.

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

Mastercard declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is a positive change 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 payout ratio is currently 23.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on MA shares. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $515.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Mastercard from $564.00 to $654.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Macquarie increased their price objective on Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Piper Sandler lifted their target price on Mastercard from $575.00 to $591.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.