Addenda Capital Inc. Sells 43 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Addenda Capital Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,979 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 43 shares during the quarter. Addenda Capital Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $7,887,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MA. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the second quarter valued at approximately $34,000. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 74.0% during the third quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the third quarter valued at approximately $54,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.4 %

MA opened at $525.22 on Tuesday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $524.28 and its two-hundred day moving average is $494.92. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29. The company has a market cap of $482.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.73, a PEG ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $427.45 and a one year high of $537.70.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.27 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $3.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 23.00%.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding 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 often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MA shares. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Macquarie upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $580.00 to $618.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $584.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $566.63.

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.