Signaturefd LLC Raises Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,634 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 501 shares during the quarter. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $11,392,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 42,178 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $22,210,000 after buying an additional 837 shares during the period. Cibc World Markets Corp raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 168.3% during the 4th quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 429,578 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $226,203,000 after purchasing an additional 269,456 shares during the last quarter. SouthState Corp lifted its stake in Mastercard by 9.9% in the 4th quarter. SouthState Corp now owns 66,243 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $34,882,000 after buying an additional 5,985 shares in the last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 539 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $284,000 after buying an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SlateStone Wealth LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. SlateStone Wealth LLC now owns 16,754 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $8,822,000 after buying an additional 81 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

NYSE:MA opened at $527.87 on Monday. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $582.23. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $545.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $523.14. The stock has a market capitalization of $481.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.00, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase 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 management believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.58%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MA. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. 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. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded shares of Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 price objective for the company in a report 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $606.11.

Mastercard 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.