6,308 Shares in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Acquired by Dale Q Rice Investment Management Ltd

Dale Q Rice Investment Management Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 6,308 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,322,000. Mastercard comprises about 1.5% of Dale Q Rice Investment Management Ltd's portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of MA. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd now owns 2,805,554 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $1,385,383,000 after acquiring an additional 62,891 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 15.6% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,510,756 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $1,325,353,000 after buying an additional 337,905 shares in the last quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.7% in the 3rd quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 831,942 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $410,813,000 after acquiring an additional 37,486 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Mastercard by 2.0% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,010,430 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $2,474,151,000 after acquiring an additional 100,550 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cardano Risk Management B.V. grew its holdings in Mastercard by 2.7% in the fourth quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 368,690 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $194,141,000 after purchasing an additional 9,611 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:MA traded up $3.58 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $508.49. The stock had a trading volume of 2,704,712 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,555,152. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $425.48 and a 12 month high of $537.70. The company has a market capitalization of $466.71 billion, a PE ratio of 38.46, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.10. The firm's fifty day moving average is $524.08 and its 200 day moving average is $492.75.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The company had revenue of $7.37 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $7.27 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $3.39 EPS. Mastercard's revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.60%. This is an increase from Mastercard's previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is 23.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MA has been the subject of several research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $580.00 to $618.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Macquarie lifted their price target on Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $566.63.

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.