Eagle Bay Advisors LLC Sells 122 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Eagle Bay Advisors LLC cut its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 25.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 361 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 122 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $190,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MA. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the second quarter worth approximately $34,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the second quarter worth approximately $35,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position 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 worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:MA traded down $0.47 on Monday, hitting $504.20. 1,348,493 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,301,348. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $425.48 and a 52 week high of $537.70. 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 stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $524.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $492.31. The company has a market cap of $462.77 billion, a PE ratio of 38.14, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.27 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.39 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given 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 0.60%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MA has been the subject of several research reports. Macquarie upped their target price on Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Barclays upped their target price on Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. UBS Group upped their target price on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $566.13.

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.