Larson Financial Group LLC Grows Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Larson Financial Group LLC increased its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 2,240 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 25 shares during the quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,179,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp grew its holdings in Mastercard by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,288,912 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $17,425,665,000 after buying an additional 257,312 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Mastercard by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,355,081 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $10,545,139,000 after buying an additional 700,769 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Mastercard by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,375,053 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $9,043,972,000 after buying an additional 453,773 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Mastercard by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,501,814 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,800,836,000 after buying an additional 304,293 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in Mastercard by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,308,684 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,115,228,000 after buying an additional 64,456 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.5 %

NYSE:MA opened at $546.98 on Friday. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $428.86 and a twelve month high of $582.23. The company has a market cap of $498.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $545.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $520.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results 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%. Analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 21.89%.

Mastercard announced that its board has authorized a stock 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 purchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $635.00 price objective (up from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four equities 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $606.11.

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.