Lindbrook Capital LLC Increases Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,723 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $3,014,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of MA. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new position in Mastercard in the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. raised its holdings in Mastercard by 483.3% in the fourth quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 58 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on MA shares. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Tigress Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $685.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $606.11.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Mastercard stock opened at $558.81 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $509.47 billion, a PE ratio of 40.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $544.58 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $519.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $582.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. Research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock 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 buy up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.