Parisi Gray Wealth Management Acquires 47 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Parisi Gray Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,896 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 47 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for about 2.5% of Parisi Gray Wealth Management’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Parisi Gray Wealth Management’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $7,844,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quilter Plc boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Quilter Plc now owns 801 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $353,000 after buying an additional 22 shares during the period. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD bought a new stake in Mastercard during the second quarter valued at about $3,417,000. Angeles Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 76.1% in the second quarter. Angeles Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,125 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $496,000 after purchasing an additional 486 shares during the last quarter. Waycross Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 12.2% in the second quarter. Waycross Partners LLC now owns 39,019 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $17,214,000 after purchasing an additional 4,243 shares during the period. Finally, Black Diamond Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 55.6% during the 2nd quarter. Black Diamond Financial LLC now owns 937 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $413,000 after purchasing an additional 335 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $505.27 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $463.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.10. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $524.08 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $492.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $425.48 and a 1-year high of $537.70.

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

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

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.60%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 23.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MA has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, November 25th. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $515.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Macquarie increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $536.00 to $576.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $566.13.

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.