Jackson Wealth Management LLC Raises Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Jackson Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 31,138 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 151 shares during the quarter. Mastercard comprises 1.9% of Jackson Wealth Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Jackson Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $16,396,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MA. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at about $142,000. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 28,537 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $15,027,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares during the last quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC grew its position in Mastercard by 29.8% in the fourth quarter. Sargent Investment Group LLC now owns 12,363 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $6,242,000 after acquiring an additional 2,837 shares during the period. Old North State Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. Old North State Wealth Management LLC now owns 841 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $444,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cassia Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 29.7% during the 4th quarter. Cassia Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,017 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,062,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have weighed in on MA. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group increased 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. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, William Blair restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $603.08.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA opened at $559.21 on Wednesday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $576.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $513.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.26, a P/E/G ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company’s fifty day moving average is $529.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $502.60.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 16.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is a positive change from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.89%.

Mastercard declared that its board has authorized a share buyback 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 buy up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.