Enhancing Capital LLC Takes $1.05 Million Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Enhancing Capital LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,990 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,048,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MA. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.3% during the third quarter. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd now owns 2,805,554 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,385,383,000 after buying an additional 62,891 shares during the period. Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its holdings in Mastercard by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 368,690 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $194,141,000 after acquiring an additional 9,611 shares during the period. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. now owns 68,237 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $35,932,000 after acquiring an additional 2,931 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 15.6% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,510,756 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,325,353,000 after purchasing an additional 337,905 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,010,430 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,474,151,000 after purchasing an additional 100,550 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA opened at $532.66 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $485.63 billion, a PE ratio of 38.35, a PEG 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 $582.23. 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 stock’s fifty day moving average price is $545.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $523.50.

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

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 issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on MA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. UBS Group boosted their target price 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. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

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.