Stonebridge Financial Group LLC Purchases New Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 8,847 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,659,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Retirement Planning Group LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter valued at $319,000. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. boosted its position in Mastercard by 9.4% in the 3rd quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 372 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $184,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the last quarter. Martin Capital Advisors LLP grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.4% during the third quarter. Martin Capital Advisors LLP now owns 9,528 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,705,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Willis Investment Counsel increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 3.3% during the third quarter. Willis Investment Counsel now owns 16,872 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $8,331,000 after acquiring an additional 541 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 9.4% in the third quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH now owns 98,953 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $48,863,000 after acquiring an additional 8,529 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA stock opened at $565.51 on Tuesday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $428.86 and a 12-month high of $576.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $519.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $531.61 and a 200 day simple moving average of $506.04.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.98 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase 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 repurchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 21.89%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $603.08.

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.