Gitterman Wealth Management LLC Buys Shares of 1,338 Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Gitterman Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 1,338 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $705,000. Mastercard makes up about 0.3% of Gitterman Wealth Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MA. Swedbank AB grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 14.8% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,874,568 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $925,662,000 after buying an additional 241,297 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,031,915 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,497,160,000 after buying an additional 138,842 shares during the last quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. KCM Investment Advisors LLC now owns 3,826 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,889,000 after buying an additional 26 shares during the last quarter. Coastline Trust Co grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Coastline Trust Co now owns 17,969 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $8,873,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Markets Americas LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $23,623,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. DZ Bank raised 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted 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, Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $606.11.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $527.87 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $481.27 billion, a PE ratio of 38.00, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $545.38 and a 200 day moving average of $522.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $582.23.

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

Mastercard announced that its board has initiated a share buyback program on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is presently 21.89%.

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.