Klingenstein Fields & Co. LP Reduces Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Klingenstein Fields & Co. LP lowered its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 32,231 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 258 shares during the period. Klingenstein Fields & Co. LP’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $16,972,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,135 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,651,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. now owns 475 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $250,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Augustine Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,797 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $946,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Goldstein Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.3% during the third quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC now owns 1,516 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $749,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Finally, Community Bank N.A. boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.9% during the third quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 2,190 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,081,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

MA stock opened at $566.02 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $533.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $508.28. The stock has a market cap of $519.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $576.94. 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 posted its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Macquarie raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded shares of Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $606.11.

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.