Strategic Family Wealth Counselors L.L.C. Takes Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Strategic Family Wealth Counselors L.L.C. bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 389 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $205,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MA. Callan Family Office LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 538.1% in the fourth quarter. Callan Family Office LLC now owns 16,826 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $8,860,000 after purchasing an additional 14,189 shares during the period. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 8.8% in the fourth quarter. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC now owns 2,325 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,224,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares during the period. Chatham Capital Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Chatham Capital Group Inc. now owns 5,840 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,075,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 53.3% during the fourth quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 11,980 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $6,308,000 after buying an additional 4,166 shares during the period. Finally, Candriam S.C.A. increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 24.9% during the fourth quarter. Candriam S.C.A. now owns 515,594 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $271,496,000 after buying an additional 102,714 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Price Performance

MA stock opened at $549.60 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $428.86 and a 52-week high of $582.23. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $544.85 and its 200-day simple moving average is $519.85. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $501.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10.

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

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors 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 yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MA has been the topic of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Raymond James reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $640.00 price objective (up previously from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

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.