Hantz Financial Services Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Hantz Financial Services Inc. cut its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 81,311 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 4,706 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises about 0.7% of Hantz Financial Services Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Hantz Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $42,816,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in Mastercard in the second quarter valued at $34,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the third quarter valued at $39,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC boosted 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 acquiring an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $55,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on MA. Citigroup boosted their target price on Mastercard from $572.00 to $584.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Mastercard from $593.00 to $580.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on Mastercard from $575.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $567.29.

Mastercard Stock Performance

NYSE MA opened at $547.61 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. The business’s 50 day moving average is $525.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $499.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $502.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.42, a PEG ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $428.86 and a 12-month high of $551.55.

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

Mastercard Increases Dividend

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

Mastercard announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management 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.