GenTrust LLC Acquires 29 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

GenTrust LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,138 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 29 shares during the quarter. GenTrust LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $599,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MA. Swedbank AB boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 14.8% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,874,568 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $925,662,000 after purchasing an additional 241,297 shares during the period. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.4% in the third quarter. Farmers & Merchants Investments Inc. now owns 6,417 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,169,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the period. Valmark Advisers Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.9% in the third quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 3,516 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,736,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the period. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.3% in the third quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,107 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,624,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares during the period. Finally, Eagle Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 4.5% during the third quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC now owns 533 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $263,000 after buying an additional 23 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

NYSE MA opened at $560.86 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $541.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $516.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $511.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.38, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $576.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid 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 0.54%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.89%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on MA. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. TD Cowen increased their target price on Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 15th. Seaport Res Ptn cut Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, KeyCorp increased their target price on Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $606.11.

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.