Vivid Wealth Management LLC Sells 109 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Vivid Wealth Management LLC reduced its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 9.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,021 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 109 shares during the period. Vivid Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $538,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Hickory Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth about $1,053,000. Aveo Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 93.8% during the fourth quarter. Aveo Capital Partners LLC now owns 2,473 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,302,000 after purchasing an additional 1,197 shares in the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 4,856 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,557,000 after purchasing an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 19,076 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $10,045,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PineStone Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 3.2% during the fourth quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,187,820 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $625,470,000 after purchasing an additional 37,370 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MA shares. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $606.11.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $564.77 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $534.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $508.68. The stock 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 Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $576.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.29.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share 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%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.98 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.89%.

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