Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC Invests $32,000 in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund bought 60 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $32,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new position in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $54,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on MA. DZ Bank upgraded Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. TD Cowen upped their price target on Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Tigress Financial upped their price target on Mastercard from $550.00 to $685.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Susquehanna upped their price target on Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $606.11.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of MA opened at $576.08 on Monday. The firm 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 company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $576.94. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $542.83 and its 200-day moving average is $518.02.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid 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 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.