Richwood Investment Advisors LLC Boosts Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Richwood Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 4.4% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,037 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 171 shares during the quarter. Mastercard comprises about 1.8% of Richwood Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Richwood Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,126,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Banco de Sabadell S.A raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Banco de Sabadell S.A now owns 7,130 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,758,000 after buying an additional 109 shares during the period. Blueprint Investment Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 57.4% in the fourth quarter. Blueprint Investment Partners LLC now owns 3,977 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,094,000 after buying an additional 1,450 shares during the period. Mosley Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Mosley Wealth Management now owns 849 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $466,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Guardian Partners Inc. bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth about $11,670,000. Finally, Fortis Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Fortis Capital Management LLC now owns 11,019 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $5,802,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

MA opened at $535.14 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $547.55 and a 200 day moving average of $524.65. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $428.86 and a 52-week high of $582.23. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The stock has a market cap of $487.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.53, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (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%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 21.89%.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $640.00 target price (up previously from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays increased their target price on Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $606.11.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.