Harbour Investments Inc. Sells 108 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Harbour Investments Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,459 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 108 shares during the quarter. Harbour Investments Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $4,981,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Addison Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 493 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $260,000 after buying an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,135 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,651,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. boosted its stake in Mastercard by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. now owns 475 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $250,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,797 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $946,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC now owns 2,245 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,182,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Trading Up 1.5 %

Mastercard stock opened at $527.87 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $545.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $523.14. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $582.23. The stock has a market cap of $481.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.00, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. On average, equities analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 21.89%.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on MA shares. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $640.00 price objective (up from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Tigress Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Monday, March 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

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.