Prudent Man Advisors LLC Lowers Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Prudent Man Advisors LLC cut its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 5.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,534 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 150 shares during the quarter. Prudent Man Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,334,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Jacobi Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 6,594 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,472,000 after purchasing an additional 307 shares in the last quarter. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC now owns 2,245 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,182,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 11.8% during the fourth quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 56,174 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $29,580,000 after purchasing an additional 5,915 shares in the last quarter. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $584,000. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 4,174,204 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,198,011,000 after purchasing an additional 56,714 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Trading Up 2.0 %

NYSE:MA opened at $576.08 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $576.94. The company’s 50 day moving average is $542.83 and its 200-day moving average is $517.21. The firm has a market cap of $525.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results 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 analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard declared that its board has initiated a share 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 repurchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is presently 21.89%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on MA. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $635.00 target price (up previously from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average 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.