2,211 Shares in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Bought by Sovran Advisors LLC

Sovran Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor bought 2,211 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,125,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Strengthening Families & Communities LLC now owns 8,345 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $4,394,000 after buying an additional 413 shares during the period. Compound Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at about $369,000. Stonebridge Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at about $4,659,000. Essex Financial Services Inc. grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 4,056 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,136,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Violich Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 155.8% in the fourth quarter. Violich Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,043 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $4,762,000 after purchasing an additional 5,508 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $564.79 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $518.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $532.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $507.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $576.94.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

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

Mastercard announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group raised their target price on Mastercard from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised 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. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $635.00 price objective (up previously from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $603.08.

Mastercard 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.