414 Shares in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Acquired by TrueWealth Advisors LLC

TrueWealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 414 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $218,000.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth about $110,000. Brooklyn Investment Group raised its holdings in Mastercard by 8.1% during the 4th quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 6,599 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,474,000 after purchasing an additional 494 shares during the last quarter. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 73.1% in the 4th quarter. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,864 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $982,000 after purchasing an additional 787 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 26.4% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 21,207 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $11,167,000 after purchasing an additional 4,434 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chemistry Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Chemistry Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,694 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,472,000 after buying an additional 35 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA stock opened at $525.22 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $524.28 and a 200-day moving average of $494.24. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $427.45 and a one year high of $537.70. The company has a market cap of $482.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The firm had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.27 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $3.39 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 19.97%.

Mastercard announced that its board has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to purchase 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 stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently issued reports on MA. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Mastercard from $580.00 to $618.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Citigroup increased their price target on Mastercard from $572.00 to $584.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $566.63.

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.