Optivise Advisory Services LLC Invests $202,000 in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Optivise Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm purchased 383 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $202,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Addison Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 493 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $260,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of 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 worth $1,651,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. grew its holdings in Mastercard by 4.2% during 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 last quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. lifted 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 worth $946,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Richard W. Paul & Associates LLC now owns 2,245 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,182,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $509.78 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $428.86 and a 52 week high of $582.23. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $536.77 and its 200 day moving average price is $529.34. The firm has a market cap of $464.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results 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%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.60%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.89%.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In other news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total transaction of $8,678,774.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $46,692,629.36. This represents a 15.67 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the sale, the insider now owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at $18,459,292.32. This trade represents a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MA shares. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Macquarie boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $607.96.

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.