Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Purchased by Essex Savings Bank

Essex Savings Bank boosted its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 4,368 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. Essex Savings Bank’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,300,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new position in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 74.0% during the third quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after acquiring an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth about $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Trading Up 2.6 %

NYSE:MA opened at $522.41 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $479.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.52, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $425.48 and a 1 year high of $537.70. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $524.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $493.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 178.27% and a net margin of 45.26%. The company’s revenue was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.39 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.97%.

Mastercard declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MA has been the topic of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $564.00 to $654.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. UBS Group raised their price target on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Mastercard from $593.00 to $580.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 1st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $566.63.

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.