Fisher Asset Management LLC Grows Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,174,204 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 56,714 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,198,011,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 483.3% in the 4th 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 during the period. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth about $39,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 72.5% in the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 88 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth about $55,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MA shares. Mizuho increased their target price on Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group increased their target price on Mastercard from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Macquarie increased their target price on Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 target price (up previously from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $576.08 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $428.86 and a twelve month high of $576.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The company has a market capitalization of $525.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $542.83 and a 200-day simple moving average of $517.21.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

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.