Mathes Company Inc. Reduces Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Mathes Company Inc. lowered its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 8,894 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 255 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for about 1.7% of Mathes Company Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Mathes Company Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $4,683,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $54,000. Raelipskie Partnership boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 120.0% in the 3rd quarter. Raelipskie Partnership now owns 110 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Macquarie increased their price objective on Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp increased their price objective on Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $606.11.

Mastercard Price Performance

Mastercard stock opened at $564.77 on Monday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $576.94. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $535.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $509.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $518.36 billion, a PE ratio of 40.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 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 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.54%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.89%.

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

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.