Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Sold by Rothschild & Co Wealth Management UK Ltd

Rothschild & Co Wealth Management UK Ltd trimmed its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 11.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,315,774 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 177,791 shares during the quarter. Mastercard accounts for about 12.2% of Rothschild & Co Wealth Management UK Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 2nd biggest holding. Rothschild & Co Wealth Management UK Ltd’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $692,847,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 74.0% in the 3rd quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $54,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MA has been the topic of a number of research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on Mastercard from $580.00 to $618.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Macquarie increased their price objective on Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup increased their price objective on Mastercard from $572.00 to $584.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price objective on Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $566.63.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Mastercard stock opened at $527.02 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $524.16 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $496.01. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $428.86 and a 52-week high of $537.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $483.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. Mastercard had a return on equity of 178.27% and a net margin of 45.26%. The firm had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $3.39 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has authorized 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 purchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This is a positive change from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.00%.

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.