J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Acquires 448 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 7.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,592 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 448 shares during the quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $3,471,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of MA. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in Mastercard by 0.6% in 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 purchasing an additional 19 shares during the period. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. boosted its stake in Mastercard by 4.2% in the 4th 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 period. Augustine Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Mastercard by 1.1% in the 4th 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 during the period. Goldstein Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Mastercard by 1.3% in the 3rd 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 during the period. Finally, Community Bank N.A. boosted its stake in Mastercard by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 2,190 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,081,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Trading Down 0.3 %

MA opened at $564.77 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The firm has a market cap of $518.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $576.94. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $535.49 and a 200 day moving average of $509.98.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. As a group, research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.98 EPS for the current year.

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

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.89%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on MA. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. DZ Bank raised Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 price objective for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Macquarie boosted their price target on Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Mizuho boosted their price target on Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $606.11.

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.