PCG Asset Management LLC Invests $229,000 in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

PCG Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 435 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $229,000.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,288,912 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $17,425,665,000 after purchasing an additional 257,312 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,355,081 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $10,545,139,000 after purchasing an additional 700,769 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 2.5% during the 3rd 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 last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Mastercard by 4.2% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,501,814 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,800,836,000 after buying an additional 304,293 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 1.0% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,308,684 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,115,228,000 after buying an additional 64,456 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MA. Tigress Financial lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $685.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. DZ Bank upgraded Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 target price for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on shares of Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Finally, Susquehanna increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $606.11.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA stock opened at $576.08 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $542.83 and a 200-day moving average of $517.61. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $576.94. The stock has a market cap of $525.22 billion, a PE ratio of 41.47, 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.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm 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. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is presently 21.89%.

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.