Scharf Investments LLC Buys 334 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Scharf Investments LLC lifted its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 4,915 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 334 shares during the quarter. Scharf Investments LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,588,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Mastercard during the third quarter valued at about $25,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $54,000. Raelipskie Partnership lifted its stake in Mastercard by 120.0% in the third quarter. Raelipskie Partnership now owns 110 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in Mastercard during the third quarter valued at $55,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MA has been the subject of several research reports. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 target price (up previously from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. TD Cowen raised their price target on Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has issued 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 $595.64.

Mastercard Stock Down 1.8 %

NYSE MA opened at $555.63 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $576.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $509.97 billion, a PE ratio of 42.03, a PEG ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The business’s 50-day moving average is $527.58 and its 200 day moving average is $500.25.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its 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 return on equity of 178.27% and a net margin of 45.26%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.00%.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board 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.