Princeton Capital Management LLC Has $5.50 Million Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Princeton Capital Management LLC cut its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 10,436 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 23 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up approximately 1.7% of Princeton Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 13th biggest position. Princeton Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $5,495,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its stake in Mastercard by 62.5% during the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $543.82 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $495.81 billion, a PE ratio of 39.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $582.23. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $548.32 and its 200-day moving average is $525.42.

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

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.89%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MA. Seaport Res Ptn cut Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $606.11.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. The trade was a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

About Mastercard

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.