WestEnd Advisors LLC Sells 2,118 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

WestEnd Advisors LLC trimmed its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 86,693 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 2,118 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up approximately 1.2% of WestEnd Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. WestEnd Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $45,650,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MA. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $273,000. Fermata Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 4.7% in the third quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 694 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $343,000 after purchasing an additional 31 shares in the last quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 43.6% during the third quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 36,140 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $17,839,000 after buying an additional 10,969 shares in the last quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Valeo Financial Advisors LLC now owns 23,964 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $11,833,000 after acquiring an additional 456 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Affirmative Financial Network lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 25.1% in the third quarter. First Affirmative Financial Network now owns 3,823 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,888,000 after purchasing an additional 768 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.8 %

NYSE:MA opened at $562.55 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $531.61 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $505.09. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $576.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $516.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.50, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) 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 expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th were given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 10th. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is presently 21.89%.

Mastercard declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on MA shares. Oppenheimer reduced their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Finally, Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $640.00 price objective (up from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $603.08.

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.