Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Holdings Boosted by Scholtz & Company LLC

Scholtz & Company LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 28,406 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 44 shares during the quarter. Mastercard accounts for 7.1% of Scholtz & Company LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 2nd largest holding. Scholtz & Company LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $14,958,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $6,022,224,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 4th quarter valued at about $837,017,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 79,739.7% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,555,277 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $818,962,000 after purchasing an additional 1,553,329 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,760,740 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $5,139,713,000 after buying an additional 817,836 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Mastercard by 12.9% during the fourth quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 5,079,915 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,674,932,000 after buying an additional 581,697 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $548.66 on Tuesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $551.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $527.59. The company has a market cap of $500.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $428.86 and a 12-month high of $582.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 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%. Research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given 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 0.55%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 34,524 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. This trade represents a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total transaction of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. This trade represents a 15.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on MA shares. KeyCorp upped their price target on Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Tigress Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Seaport Res Ptn cut shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Four investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $606.11.

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.