Motley Fool Asset Management LLC Increases Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 10.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 81,737 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 7,584 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for about 2.2% of Motley Fool Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 10th largest position. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $43,040,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 62.5% in the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MA has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays upped their target price on Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley dropped 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. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note 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.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $606.11.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.2 %

MA opened at $547.62 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $499.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $551.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $528.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $582.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS 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%. Analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

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 issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In related news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 34,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $18,459,292.32. The trade was a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total value of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,692,629.36. The trade was a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About Mastercard

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.