Berkeley Capital Partners LLC Purchases 44 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Berkeley Capital Partners LLC raised its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 6.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 696 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Berkeley Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $366,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. iA Global Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Mastercard by 14.6% in the fourth quarter. iA Global Asset Management Inc. now owns 260,577 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $137,212,000 after purchasing an additional 33,111 shares in the last quarter. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at $513,000. Teacher Retirement System of Texas lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 47.6% during the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 427,116 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $224,906,000 after acquiring an additional 137,815 shares during the last quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson grew its position in Mastercard by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. First National Bank of Hutchinson now owns 2,561 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,349,000 after acquiring an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Generali Investments Management Co LLC bought a new position in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $1,400,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MA. Morgan Stanley cut 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. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 target price (up previously from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer decreased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at $18,459,292.32. The trade was a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of MA stock opened at $536.08 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The stock has a market cap of $488.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.59, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s fifty day moving average is $546.96 and its 200 day moving average is $524.00. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $428.86 and a twelve month high of $582.23.

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

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.57%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

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

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.