Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Buys 9,790 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd grew its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 205.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 14,546 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 9,790 shares during the quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd's holdings in Mastercard were worth $7,668,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of MA. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Truvestments Capital LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 62.5% in the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, FPC Investment Advisory Inc. increased its stake in Mastercard by 483.3% in the 4th quarter. FPC Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 70 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 58 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Mastercard stock traded down $1.24 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $535.14. 5,973,324 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,376,248. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $428.86 and a 12-month high of $582.23. The business's 50-day moving average is $547.55 and its 200-day moving average is $524.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $487.89 billion, a PE ratio of 38.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10.

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Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, beating 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%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the credit services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.57%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 34,524 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,459,292.32. This trade represents a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on MA shares. Susquehanna raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a "positive" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of Mastercard from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Mastercard from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Macquarie increased their price objective on Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $606.11.

Mastercard 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.