Skylands Capital LLC Reduces Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Skylands Capital LLC trimmed its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,175 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 50 shares during the period. Skylands Capital LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $619,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MA. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Mastercard in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 483.3% during the fourth quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter worth $55,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MA shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $635.00 price objective (up from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised 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. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $606.11.

Mastercard Stock Down 1.0 %

Mastercard stock opened at $557.44 on Monday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $576.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $508.22 billion, a PE ratio of 40.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $538.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $514.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. On average, analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan 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 buy up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.55%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 21.89%.

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.