Wrapmanager Inc. Sells 81 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Wrapmanager Inc. lessened its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,195 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 81 shares during the quarter. Wrapmanager Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,736,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $39,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. raised its position in Mastercard by 483.3% during the 4th quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $558.44 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $539.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $514.96. The stock has a market cap of $509.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.20, 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.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. Analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued 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 dividend yield of 0.54%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MA has been the subject of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $640.00 target price (up from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Citigroup boosted their price target on Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.