Madison Investment Advisors LLC Takes Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Madison Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 1,934 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,018,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MA. JPL Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $4,242,000. Phillips Financial Management LLC increased its holdings in Mastercard by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Phillips Financial Management LLC now owns 802 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $422,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the period. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 9.1% in the fourth quarter. Thompson Siegel & Walmsley LLC now owns 600 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $316,000 after buying an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Impact Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $1,222,000. Finally, Madison Wealth Partners Inc increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Madison Wealth Partners Inc now owns 688 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $362,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE MA traded up $1.94 on Tuesday, reaching $545.61. 316,389 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,376,994. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $582.23. 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 business's fifty day moving average price is $548.32 and its 200 day moving average price is $525.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $497.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.27, 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 announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. Analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard's payout ratio is presently 21.89%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently commented on MA. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Monness Crespi & Hardt upgraded Mastercard from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $640.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 31st. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued 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. Four investment 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. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $606.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mastercard news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 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 sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.