Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Sold by Sheets Smith Wealth Management

Sheets Smith Wealth Management cut its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 6.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,353 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 150 shares during the quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,239,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the second quarter worth approximately $34,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 74.0% during the 3rd quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the third quarter valued at $54,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA opened at $527.84 on Wednesday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $537.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29. The company has a market capitalization of $484.47 billion, a PE ratio of 39.93, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $524.19 and its 200 day moving average price is $495.46.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 178.27% and a net margin of 45.26%. The firm’s revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.39 EPS. Research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This is a positive change from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 23.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MA has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $572.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on Mastercard from $580.00 to $618.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $564.00 to $654.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Four 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $566.63.

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.