Prospect Financial Services LLC Buys 65 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Prospect Financial Services LLC lifted its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 9.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 772 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Prospect Financial Services LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $407,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MA. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd now owns 2,805,554 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,385,383,000 after acquiring an additional 62,891 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in Mastercard by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,510,756 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,325,353,000 after buying an additional 337,905 shares during the period. Cardano Risk Management B.V. raised its position in Mastercard by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 368,690 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $194,141,000 after buying an additional 9,611 shares during the last quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP lifted its stake in Mastercard by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 831,942 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $410,813,000 after acquiring an additional 37,486 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,010,430 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,474,151,000 after acquiring an additional 100,550 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Price Performance

MA stock opened at $547.53 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $524.77 and its two-hundred day moving average is $497.91. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $428.86 and a 52-week high of $547.99. The company has a market capitalization of $502.53 billion, a PE ratio of 41.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36.

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

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 23.00%.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on MA. Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Susquehanna boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $540.00 to $605.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $572.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Citigroup boosted their price target on Mastercard from $572.00 to $584.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Four investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $567.29.

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.