Abacus FCF Advisors LLC Acquires New Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Abacus FCF Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 35,050 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $18,456,000. Mastercard accounts for approximately 2.4% of Abacus FCF Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest position.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Mastercard by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 77,179,138 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $40,640,219,000 after acquiring an additional 377,302 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 4.3% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 22,267,937 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $11,725,627,000 after purchasing an additional 912,856 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,657,792 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $9,800,202,000 after purchasing an additional 282,739 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at $6,022,224,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in Mastercard by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,760,740 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $5,139,713,000 after buying an additional 817,836 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In other news, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total value of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. This represents a 15.67 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 represents a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Trading Up 2.1 %

Shares of NYSE MA traded up $10.32 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $509.66. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,735,418 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,610,523. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $542.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $528.53. The stock has a market cap of $464.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $582.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. On average, analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan 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 plans are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.60%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.89%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on MA shares. Oppenheimer lowered their price target on Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Tigress Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Monday, March 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $633.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target 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.