Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Position Raised by Navalign LLC

Navalign LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 16.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,184 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the quarter. Navalign LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $505,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MA. Cypress Wealth Services LLC raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Cypress Wealth Services LLC now owns 864 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $369,000 after purchasing an additional 24 shares during the period. Cassia Capital Partners LLC lifted its stake in Mastercard by 2.1% during the third quarter. Cassia Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,240 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $491,000 after buying an additional 26 shares in the last quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 8.4% in the third quarter. Armstrong Advisory Group Inc. now owns 348 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $138,000 after buying an additional 27 shares during the period. Visionary Wealth Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.5% during the third quarter. Visionary Wealth Advisors now owns 5,311 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,103,000 after acquiring an additional 27 shares during the period. Finally, Tufton Capital Management lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. Tufton Capital Management now owns 578 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $229,000 after acquiring an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Craig Vosburg sold 8,900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $430.26, for a total transaction of $3,829,314.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 46,491 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,003,217.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 98 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $439.52, for a total transaction of $43,072.96. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 6,235 shares in the company, valued at $2,740,407.20. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Craig Vosburg sold 8,900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $430.26, for a total value of $3,829,314.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 46,491 shares in the company, valued at $20,003,217.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 50,628 shares of company stock worth $23,309,067. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA stock traded up $3.62 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $481.57. The stock had a trading volume of 2,207,475 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,443,068. The firm has a market cap of $449.25 billion, a PE ratio of 40.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a quick ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $355.82 and a one year high of $490.00. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $464.17 and its 200 day simple moving average is $426.46.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.08 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $6.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.46 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 44.60% and a return on equity of 191.22%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.65 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.35 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 5th that allows the company to repurchase $11.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to buy up to 2.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 8th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.55%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is presently 22.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the company. William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. Tigress Financial upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $476.00 to $495.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 7th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $490.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Monness Crespi & Hardt initiated coverage on Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, December 20th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Mastercard from $433.00 to $482.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $479.62.

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.