Spartan Planning & Wealth Management Makes New $804,000 Investment in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Spartan Planning & Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 1,526 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $804,000. Mastercard makes up 0.7% of Spartan Planning & Wealth Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MA. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard during the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in Mastercard by 74.0% during the 3rd quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on MA. TD Cowen upped their price objective on Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Mizuho raised their price target on Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Macquarie raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America boosted their price target on Mastercard from $480.00 to $509.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Mastercard from $566.00 to $572.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $562.76.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE:MA traded up $2.14 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $514.07. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 893,995 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,051,366. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The stock has a market cap of $471.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $523.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $490.70. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $416.53 and a twelve month high of $537.70.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The business had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.27 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.39 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. This is a positive change from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.00%.

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