Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Sold by NORTHSTAR ASSET MANAGEMENT Co LLC

NORTHSTAR ASSET MANAGEMENT Co LLC reduced its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 12.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 489 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 70 shares during the period. NORTHSTAR ASSET MANAGEMENT Co LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $257,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the third quarter worth about $25,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Raelipskie Partnership lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 120.0% in the third quarter. Raelipskie Partnership now owns 110 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $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 approximately $55,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $562.55 on Monday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $531.61 and a 200-day simple moving average of $505.53. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $428.86 and a 12-month high of $576.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The stock has a market cap of $516.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.50, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th were 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 was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 21.89%.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback 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 repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MA shares. UBS Group upped their price target on Mastercard from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $603.08.

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.