Evanson Asset Management LLC Sells 237 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Evanson Asset Management LLC decreased its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 9.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,229 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 237 shares during the quarter. Evanson Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,174,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in MA. Goldstein Advisors LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC now owns 1,516 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $749,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Community Bank N.A. grew its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.5% in the third quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC now owns 1,398 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $690,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. Boltwood Capital Management raised its holdings in Mastercard by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 2,055 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,082,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Traveka Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Mastercard by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC now owns 1,478 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $778,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MA shares. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Susquehanna increased their target price on Mastercard from $540.00 to $605.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Mastercard from $564.00 to $654.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $575.00 price objective (up from $565.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $584.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $566.63.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $525.22 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $524.28 and its 200 day moving average price is $494.59. 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 stock has a market cap of $482.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.73, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $427.45 and a 12 month high of $537.70.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. Mastercard had a return on equity of 178.27% and a net margin of 45.26%. The business had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.27 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.39 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is a positive change from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.97%.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Company 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.