Raleigh Capital Management Inc. Buys 51 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 9.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 614 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $323,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MA. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in Mastercard in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth $39,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 74.0% during the 3rd quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth $54,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 1.2 %

MA stock opened at $533.77 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $489.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $537.70. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $524.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $496.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $7.37 billion during 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 quarterly revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.39 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

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

Mastercard declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MA has been the subject of a number of research reports. KeyCorp upped their price objective on Mastercard from $515.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Mastercard from $564.00 to $654.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $593.00 to $580.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $566.63.

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.