Woodward Diversified Capital LLC Sells 102 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Woodward Diversified Capital LLC trimmed its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 11.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 822 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 102 shares during the period. Woodward Diversified Capital LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $433,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter worth $25,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the third quarter worth about $54,000. Raelipskie Partnership increased its holdings in Mastercard by 120.0% in the 3rd quarter. Raelipskie Partnership now owns 110 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $55,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. DZ Bank raised Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $603.08.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.8 %

MA stock opened at $562.55 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $531.02 and a 200-day moving average of $504.29. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $576.94. The company has a market capitalization of $516.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.50, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued 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%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 16.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding 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 typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.54%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 21.89%.

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.