Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC Sells 347 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC trimmed its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 19,291 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 347 shares during the period. Horizon Kinetics Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $10,158,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Swedbank AB raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 14.8% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,874,568 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $925,662,000 after buying an additional 241,297 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.8% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,031,915 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,497,160,000 after buying an additional 138,842 shares in the last quarter. Adero Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 9.5% in the third quarter. Adero Partners LLC now owns 2,131 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,052,000 after buying an additional 184 shares in the last quarter. Accent Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 1.5% during the third quarter. Accent Capital Management LLC now owns 6,720 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,319,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the period. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the third quarter valued at approximately $67,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of MA stock opened at $527.87 on Monday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $582.23. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $545.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $523.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $481.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.00, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on MA. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 target price for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 target price (up from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $635.00 target price (up from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

Mastercard Company 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.