Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC Acquires 2,077 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 81.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 4,636 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,077 shares during the quarter. Moss Adams Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,441,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Mastercard by 4.5% in the second quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 80,661 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $35,584,000 after purchasing an additional 3,473 shares in the last quarter. Blue Whale Capital LLP raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 3.9% in the 2nd quarter. Blue Whale Capital LLP now owns 127,250 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $56,138,000 after buying an additional 4,750 shares in the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 142,002 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $62,646,000 after acquiring an additional 5,158 shares during the period. Investidor Profissional Gestao de Recursos Ltda. boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 6.9% during the 2nd quarter. Investidor Profissional Gestao de Recursos Ltda. now owns 24,146 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $10,652,000 after acquiring an additional 1,559 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Summit Trail Advisors LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 11.6% in the second quarter. Summit Trail Advisors LLC now owns 14,949 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $6,595,000 after acquiring an additional 1,549 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on MA shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $572.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $564.00 to $654.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Macquarie increased their price target on Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $566.63.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA opened at $525.22 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $524.28 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $494.24. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $427.45 and a 12 month high of $537.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $482.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.27 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $3.39 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.46 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, January 10th. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s payout ratio is presently 19.97%.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.