Modus Advisors LLC Sells 57 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Modus Advisors LLC decreased its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 6,631 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 57 shares during the quarter. Modus Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $3,492,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Fairway Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in Mastercard in the third quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 74.0% during the third quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MA. UBS Group upped their price objective on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Susquehanna upped their target price on Mastercard from $540.00 to $605.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Macquarie raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $480.00 to $509.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $562.76.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA stock traded down $4.07 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $518.33. The stock had a trading volume of 316,981 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,526,636. The firm has a market cap of $475.74 billion, a PE ratio of 39.21, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $523.06 and its 200-day simple moving average is $488.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $416.53 and a fifty-two week high of $537.70.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The firm had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.27 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.59%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.00%.

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

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.