Andina Capital Management LLC Cuts Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Andina Capital Management LLC decreased its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 518 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 41 shares during the period. Andina Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $273,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter worth $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new stake in Mastercard during the third quarter worth about $39,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of 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. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the third quarter worth approximately $55,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MA. William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Monday, November 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $593.00 to $580.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $564.00 to $654.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $567.29.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.1 %

NYSE:MA opened at $533.50 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $537.70. The stock has a market cap of $489.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.36, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $524.77 and its 200-day moving average price is $497.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36.

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

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.57%. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.00%.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are 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.