Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Bought by SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC

SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 5.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 5,938 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 303 shares during the period. SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $3,127,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in Mastercard during the third quarter valued at about $39,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the third quarter worth about $54,000. Raelipskie Partnership raised its position in Mastercard by 120.0% in the third quarter. Raelipskie Partnership now owns 110 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $55,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Down 1.8 %

MA opened at $555.63 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $509.97 billion, a PE ratio of 42.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $576.94. The business has a 50-day moving average of $528.28 and a 200-day moving average of $501.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. Equities research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 23.00%.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MA shares. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Macquarie lifted their target price on Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, TD Cowen upped their target price on Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $595.64.

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.