Greenwood Gearhart Inc. Buys New Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Greenwood Gearhart Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 692 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $364,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MA. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Truvestments Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 62.5% during the fourth quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 25 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

NYSE:MA traded up $4.03 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $517.46. 3,329,748 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,624,345. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $537.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $528.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The company has a market capitalization of $471.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $582.23.

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

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.59%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.89%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on MA shares. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $640.00 target price (up previously from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp increased their price target 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. William Blair reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $635.00 target price (up previously from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report 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 assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $607.96.

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.