Agate Pass Investment Management LLC Sells 125 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Agate Pass Investment Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,857 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 125 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises approximately 1.6% of Agate Pass Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Agate Pass Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $3,611,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MA. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 120,665.3% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 8,041,758 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,971,020,000 after buying an additional 8,035,099 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in Mastercard by 51.7% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 5,765,714 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,846,187,000 after acquiring an additional 1,965,782 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 3.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,355,081 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $10,545,139,000 after purchasing an additional 700,769 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.5% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,375,053 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $9,043,972,000 after purchasing an additional 453,773 shares during the period. Finally, Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 52.8% during the 3rd quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 1,185,081 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $573,017,000 after purchasing an additional 409,334 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on MA shares. Citigroup upped their price target on Mastercard from $566.00 to $572.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Mastercard from $564.00 to $654.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 15th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $572.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Three 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $566.13.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of MA traded up $0.11 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $504.78. 1,407,595 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,317,929. 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 $524.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $492.31. The stock has a market cap of $463.30 billion, a PE ratio of 38.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $425.48 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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $7.37 billion for 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%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.39 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.60%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 23.00%.

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.