Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. Acquires 73 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,478 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 73 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises 2.1% of Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 8th largest position. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $7,097,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the third quarter worth $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at about $39,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Mastercard by 74.0% during the third quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the period. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Mastercard during the third quarter worth about $54,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MA. Citigroup raised their price objective on Mastercard from $572.00 to $584.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley raised 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. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $572.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $567.29.

Mastercard Stock Performance

NYSE MA opened at $533.50 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $537.70. The firm has a market capitalization of $489.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.36, a P/E/G ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $524.77 and its 200 day simple moving average is $497.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 178.27% and a net margin of 45.26%. Mastercard’s revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.39 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. 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 Friday, January 10th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.00%.

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.