Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC Sells 286 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 14,555 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 286 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for about 1.1% of Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. Fort Sheridan Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $7,664,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Addison Advisors LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 493 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $260,000 after purchasing an additional 18 shares in the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.6% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. now owns 475 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $250,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,797 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $946,000 after buying an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Community Bank N.A. increased its holdings in 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 buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MA has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $635.00 price objective (up previously from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Macquarie boosted their target price on Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

Mastercard Stock Performance

MA opened at $564.91 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $428.86 and a 52-week high of $576.94. The firm has a market cap of $515.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s fifty day moving average is $541.87 and its 200-day moving average is $516.37.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Sell-side analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

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

Mastercard announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.