M. Kulyk & Associates LLC Increases Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

M. Kulyk & Associates LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,015 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 79 shares during the period. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,114,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 483.3% in the 4th quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Mastercard stock opened at $546.98 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $498.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $545.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $520.77. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $428.86 and a 12-month high of $582.23. 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 released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (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%. Equities analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.89%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MA has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. 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 report on Monday, December 9th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.