Principal Securities Inc. Raises Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Principal Securities Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 10.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 30,552 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,851 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $16,088,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in 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 valued at $1,651,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. now owns 475 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $250,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,797 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $946,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 1.3% during the third quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC now owns 1,516 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $749,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Community Bank N.A. grew its holdings in Mastercard by 0.9% in the third quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 2,190 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,081,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on MA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $606.11.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $564.77 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $576.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The company has a market capitalization of $518.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.66, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $535.49 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $509.54.

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 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%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.98 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

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

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.