Stonegate Investment Group LLC Has $8.44 Million Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Stonegate Investment Group LLC lifted its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 16,025 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. Stonegate Investment Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $8,438,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in Mastercard in the second quarter worth $34,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter worth $39,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 74.0% in the third quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth about $54,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on MA. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $575.00 to $591.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $564.00 to $654.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Mastercard from $580.00 to $618.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $567.29.

Mastercard Price Performance

MA stock opened at $547.53 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. The firm has a market cap of $502.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.42, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $524.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $497.91. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $428.86 and a 12-month high of $547.99.

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

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 23.00%.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard 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.