Rossby Financial LCC Takes Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Rossby Financial LCC bought a new position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,435 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,282,000. Mastercard accounts for about 0.8% of Rossby Financial LCC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MA. Chiron Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 260.0% in the fourth quarter. Chiron Investment Management LLC now owns 10,933 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $5,757,000 after buying an additional 7,896 shares in the last quarter. Aware Super Pty Ltd as trustee of Aware Super acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $80,493,000. Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $28,207,000. Promethos Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Promethos Capital LLC now owns 8,458 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,454,000 after purchasing an additional 280 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Comgest Global Investors S.A.S. acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $3,071,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA opened at $509.66 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $582.23. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $542.81 and its 200 day moving average price is $528.53. The company has a market capitalization of $464.66 billion, a PE ratio of 36.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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%. As a group, analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.89%.

Mastercard declared that its board has approved a stock buyback 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 reacquire up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on shares of Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Citigroup raised their target price on Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Susquehanna increased their price objective on Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $607.96.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In related news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total value of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. This represents a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the sale, the insider now owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.