Certuity LLC Decreases Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Certuity LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 65.4% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 5,231 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 9,881 shares during the quarter. Certuity LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,754,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,135 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,651,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. boosted its position in Mastercard by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. now owns 475 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $250,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Mastercard by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,797 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $946,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 1.3% in the third quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC now owns 1,516 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $749,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Community Bank N.A. raised its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 2,190 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,081,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.1 %

NYSE MA opened at $564.79 on Wednesday. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $428.86 and a twelve month high of $576.94. The stock has a market cap of $518.38 billion, a PE ratio of 40.66, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $532.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $507.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced 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, research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.98 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.89%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $635.00 price target (up previously from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $603.08.

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.