Summit Financial LLC Purchases 1,665 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Summit Financial LLC raised its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 17.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,135 shares of the credit services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,665 shares during the period. Summit Financial LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $5,863,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MA. NewSquare Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at $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% in the fourth 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 last quarter. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of MA traded down $0.89 on Wednesday, reaching $547.62. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,993,243 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,552,317. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $428.86 and a twelve month high of $582.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $499.27 billion, a PE ratio of 39.43, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. 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 firm has a fifty day moving average of $551.46 and a 200-day moving average of $527.98.

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Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS 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%. Equities analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

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

Mastercard announced 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 reacquire up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on MA. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $590.00 to $610.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Macquarie lifted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $565.00 to $645.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $606.11.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total value of $8,678,774.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares of the company's stock, valued at $46,692,629.36. The trade was 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.

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.