Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI Grows Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI boosted its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 46.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 35,701 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 11,318 shares during the period. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $18,799,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,288,912 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $17,425,665,000 after acquiring an additional 257,312 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position 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 during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 2.5% in 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 in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in Mastercard by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,501,814 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,800,836,000 after purchasing an additional 304,293 shares during the period. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.0% during the 3rd 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 in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MA has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Macquarie lifted their price target on Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective 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. Susquehanna boosted 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $574.39 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $523.68 billion, a PE ratio of 41.35, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $582.23. The business’s fifty day moving average is $543.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $518.76.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. Analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.53%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 21.89%.

Mastercard declared that its board has authorized a share buyback 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 buy up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.