Compton Wealth Advisory Group LLC Has $1.74 Million Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Compton Wealth Advisory Group LLC cut its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,306 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 98 shares during the quarter. Compton Wealth Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,741,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 2nd quarter worth $34,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the 2nd quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Mastercard by 74.0% during the third quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE:MA traded down $1.02 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $503.65. 1,280,005 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,293,949. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $524.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $492.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $462.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.10, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $425.48 and a 12-month high of $537.70.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The firm had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.27 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $3.39 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.60%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 23.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently weighed in on MA shares. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Susquehanna increased their price objective on Mastercard from $540.00 to $605.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Three 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $566.13.

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.