Brueske Advisory Services LLC Buys New Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Brueske Advisory Services LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 582 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $306,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the third quarter worth approximately $39,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. raised its holdings in Mastercard by 483.3% during the fourth quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the third quarter worth approximately $54,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $606.11.

Mastercard Stock Performance

NYSE:MA opened at $560.86 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $541.04 and its 200 day moving average price is $516.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $576.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market cap of $511.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping 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, sell-side analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.