VSM Wealth Advisory LLC Takes Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 269 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $141,000.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MA. Saiph Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. Saiph Capital LLC now owns 944 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $497,000 after acquiring an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. OVERSEA CHINESE BANKING Corp Ltd now owns 56,279 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $29,668,000 after purchasing an additional 624 shares in the last quarter. Brooklyn FI LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth about $603,000. Enhancing Capital LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $1,048,000. Finally, Xponance Inc. lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 213,276 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $112,305,000 after buying an additional 2,765 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $535.93 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $488.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.58, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $582.23. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $546.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $523.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. As a group, analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on MA shares. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 target price (up from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Macquarie lifted their target price on Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $606.11.

Mastercard Company 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.