Clarius Group LLC Sells 2,633 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Clarius Group LLC cut its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 25.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,667 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 2,633 shares during the period. Clarius Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $4,037,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of MA. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Mastercard by 0.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,288,912 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $17,425,665,000 after purchasing an additional 257,312 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,355,081 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $10,545,139,000 after buying an additional 700,769 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of 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 worth $9,043,972,000 after buying an additional 453,773 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Mastercard by 120,665.3% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 8,041,758 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,971,020,000 after buying an additional 8,035,099 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew 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 acquiring an additional 304,293 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $525.22 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $524.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $494.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29. The stock has a market capitalization of $482.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.73, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $427.45 and a 52 week high of $537.70.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 178.27% and a net margin of 45.26%. The firm’s revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.39 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.46 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in 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 usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This is a positive change from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 19.97%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $572.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Macquarie boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Robert W. Baird raised their price objective 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 lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $566.63.

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.