Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. Grows Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. grew its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 330,792 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,400 shares during the quarter. Mastercard makes up about 1.2% of Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V.’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest holding. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $174,185,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MA. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. K.J. Harrison & Partners Inc now owns 10,358 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $5,411,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares during the period. Apriem Advisors purchased a new position in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth approximately $2,659,000. Walter Public Investments Inc. grew its holdings in Mastercard by 11.8% in the fourth quarter. Walter Public Investments Inc. now owns 44,819 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $23,600,000 after purchasing an additional 4,729 shares during the period. GenTrust LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. GenTrust LLC now owns 1,138 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $599,000 after buying an additional 29 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SRN Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 17.1% in the fourth quarter. SRN Advisors LLC now owns 5,619 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,959,000 after buying an additional 821 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Mastercard stock opened at $560.86 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $511.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $541.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $516.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $576.94.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share 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%. On average, analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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 0.54%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MA has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Tigress Financial lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $685.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. DZ Bank raised shares of Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $640.00 price objective (up from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $606.11.

Mastercard 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.