Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. Has $19.25 Million Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 1.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 36,555 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 674 shares during the period. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Mastercard were worth $19,249,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in Mastercard during the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. First Personal Financial Services acquired a new position in Mastercard in the third quarter valued at about $39,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Mastercard by 74.0% in the third quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 37 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the third quarter worth about $54,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on MA. Mizuho boosted their target price on Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Macquarie boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $505.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Mastercard from $545.00 to $575.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $566.63.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE MA traded up $0.73 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $523.08. 3,275,621 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,674,202. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $524.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $493.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. 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 $480.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 178.27% and a net margin of 45.26%. Mastercard's revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.39 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.46 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This is a boost from Mastercard's previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.58%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.97%.

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.