Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC Acquires 54 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC grew its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,193 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the period. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,681,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Mastercard in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 483.3% in the fourth quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. First Personal Financial Services bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard during the third quarter worth $55,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MA. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $635.00 target price (up from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Susquehanna raised their price objective on Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on Mastercard from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

Mastercard Price Performance

Mastercard stock opened at $558.44 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $509.13 billion, a PE ratio of 40.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $539.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $514.96. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $576.94.

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 return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. As a group, research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.89%.

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

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.