TIAA Trust National Association Grows Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

TIAA Trust National Association boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 84,393 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,660 shares during the period. TIAA Trust National Association’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $44,439,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,031,915 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,497,160,000 after purchasing an additional 138,842 shares during the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. raised its holdings in Mastercard by 14.5% in the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 2,978 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,470,000 after buying an additional 376 shares during the last quarter. Algert Global LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter worth approximately $1,540,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 49.3% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 2,215 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,094,000 after buying an additional 731 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.5% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 4,117,490 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,033,217,000 after acquiring an additional 99,145 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at $18,459,292.32. This trade represents a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MA shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Tigress Financial reissued a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

Mastercard Price Performance

NYSE:MA opened at $543.82 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $495.81 billion, a PE ratio of 39.15, 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. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $548.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $525.42. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $582.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. As a group, analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

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 given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 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.