Souders Financial Advisors Makes New $426,000 Investment in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Souders Financial Advisors purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 809 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $426,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Triad Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $1,017,000. Carrera Capital Advisors raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Carrera Capital Advisors now owns 545 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $287,000 after purchasing an additional 41 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 525,676 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $276,805,000 after purchasing an additional 8,477 shares during the period. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 46.4% in the fourth quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 35,701 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $18,799,000 after purchasing an additional 11,318 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,175,730 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,725,384,000 after purchasing an additional 165,300 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.7 %

MA opened at $558.81 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $544.58 and its 200-day moving average is $519.64. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $582.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The company has a market cap of $509.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.23, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MA. DZ Bank raised shares of Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their price target on shares of Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.