Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund Raises Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund boosted its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 5.1% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 78,514 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,840 shares during the quarter. Mastercard comprises approximately 0.6% of Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $41,343,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 25.3% during the 4th quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 536,367 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $282,435,000 after buying an additional 108,242 shares during the last quarter. FourThought Financial Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. FourThought Financial Partners LLC now owns 11,155 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $5,874,000 after buying an additional 52 shares during the last quarter. Exchange Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Exchange Capital Management Inc. now owns 470 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $247,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares during the last quarter. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $247,000. Finally, Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC boosted its stake in Mastercard by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC now owns 3,193 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,681,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on MA shares. Macquarie increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded shares of Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $606.11.

Mastercard Price Performance

NYSE:MA opened at $558.44 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company has a market capitalization of $509.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.20, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $576.94. The company has a 50-day moving average of $539.55 and a 200-day moving average of $514.96.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

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

Mastercard announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the credit services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.