RNC Capital Management LLC Lowers Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

RNC Capital Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 9.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 445 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 45 shares during the quarter. RNC Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $235,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Brookstone Capital Management lifted its stake in Mastercard by 6.0% in the 3rd quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 8,390 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,143,000 after buying an additional 474 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC raised its holdings in Mastercard by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 57,927 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $28,604,000 after acquiring an additional 3,089 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. raised its holdings in Mastercard by 3.1% in the 3rd quarter. Pinnacle Bancorp Inc. now owns 832 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $411,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Private Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in Mastercard by 10.1% in the 3rd quarter. Private Advisory Group LLC now owns 9,780 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,829,000 after acquiring an additional 897 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $273,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $635.00 price objective (up previously from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $603.08.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA stock opened at $562.55 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $576.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $516.33 billion, a PE ratio of 40.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $531.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $504.29.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. On average, research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 16.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th were given a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.89%.

Mastercard announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.