Avalon Trust Co Sells 157 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Avalon Trust Co lessened its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,459 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 157 shares during the quarter. Avalon Trust Co’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,875,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. NewSquare Capital LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Truvestments Capital LLC raised its position in Mastercard by 62.5% during the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. raised its position in Mastercard by 483.3% during the fourth quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Trading Up 1.5 %

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $527.87 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $481.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.00, a PEG 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’s 50-day moving average price is $545.38 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $522.78.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share 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%. On average, analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business 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 $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on MA shares. Tigress Financial reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, March 10th. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 price objective (up from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research report 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $606.11.

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.