Arjuna Capital Has $3.78 Million Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Arjuna Capital trimmed its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,175 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 190 shares during the quarter. Arjuna Capital’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $3,778,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MA. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 483.3% in the fourth quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 target price (up previously from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four investment 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of MA stock opened at $546.98 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $498.68 billion, a PE ratio of 39.38, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 Incorporated has a 12-month low of $428.86 and a 12-month high of $582.23. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $545.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $520.41.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS 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%. As a group, analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its board has initiated a share 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 buy up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is 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 given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 21.89%.

About Mastercard

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.