Donaldson Capital Management LLC Acquires 240 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Donaldson Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 19,671 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the period. Donaldson Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $10,358,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MA. NewSquare Capital LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 483.3% during the fourth quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the period. Finally, Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 72.5% during the fourth quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 88 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Performance

NYSE MA opened at $535.80 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $488.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.57, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a 50 day moving average of $545.35 and a 200-day moving average of $521.61. 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 Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $582.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid 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 0.57%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.89%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Susquehanna upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of Mastercard from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $640.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.