Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Bought by Allen Capital Group LLC

Allen Capital Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 8.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,086 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 84 shares during the period. Allen Capital Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $572,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Mastercard Price Performance

NYSE:MA opened at $549.25 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $504.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 41.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $428.86 and a 12-month high of $551.55. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. The company’s 50-day moving average is $525.85 and its two-hundred day moving average is $499.45.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.27 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.39 earnings per share. Mastercard’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.55%. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.00%.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MA. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Mastercard from $575.00 to $591.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $572.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Mastercard from $580.00 to $618.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Barclays raised their target price on Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $540.00 to $605.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $567.29.

About Mastercard

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.