E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB Has $70.29 Million Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 133,479 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,501 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for 1.6% of E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $70,286,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in Mastercard in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $55,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 24.1% during the 4th quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 108 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 21 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $564.48 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $528.28 and its 200-day moving average price is $501.78. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $428.86 and a 52-week high of $576.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $518.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. Equities research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 16.04 EPS for the current year.

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

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 21.89%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $635.00 target price (up previously from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $599.42.

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.