Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Sold by Moser Wealth Advisors LLC

Moser Wealth Advisors LLC cut its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,440 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 205 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up approximately 4.0% of Moser Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Moser Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $7,604,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the third quarter valued at $273,000. Fermata Advisors LLC raised its position in Mastercard by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 694 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $343,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares during the last quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 43.6% during the third quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 36,140 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $17,839,000 after purchasing an additional 10,969 shares during the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.9% in the third quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 23,964 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $11,833,000 after buying an additional 456 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Affirmative Financial Network lifted its position in Mastercard by 25.1% during the 3rd quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 3,823 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,888,000 after buying an additional 768 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $562.55 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $516.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.50, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $576.94. The business has a 50-day moving average of $531.61 and a 200-day moving average of $505.09. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.98 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th were paid a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 10th. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 21.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on MA shares. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Barclays boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, DZ Bank upgraded Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $603.08.

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.