Level Four Advisory Services LLC Buys 552 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Level Four Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 15,778 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 552 shares during the period. Level Four Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $8,309,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Truvestments Capital LLC raised its position in Mastercard by 62.5% during the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. boosted its stake in Mastercard by 483.3% during the fourth quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at $18,459,292.32. This trade represents a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total transaction of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. This trade represents a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently commented on MA. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $640.00 price target (up from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group lifted their target price on Mastercard from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective 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. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

Mastercard Trading Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $557.64 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $582.23. The company’s 50 day moving average is $550.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $526.28. The company has a market cap of $508.40 billion, a PE ratio of 40.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share 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%. Equities analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

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.