Waycross Partners LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Waycross Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 3.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 45,239 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 1,656 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises about 3.1% of Waycross Partners LLC's holdings, making the stock its 9th biggest holding. Waycross Partners LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $23,822,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Mastercard by 120,665.3% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 8,041,758 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $3,971,020,000 after acquiring an additional 8,035,099 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can grew its position in Mastercard by 51.7% during the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 5,765,714 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $2,846,187,000 after purchasing an additional 1,965,782 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,355,081 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $10,545,139,000 after buying an additional 700,769 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,375,053 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $9,043,972,000 after buying an additional 453,773 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 52.8% during the 3rd quarter. Montrusco Bolton Investments Inc. now owns 1,185,081 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $573,017,000 after buying an additional 409,334 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Mastercard stock traded down $4.89 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $563.61. The stock had a trading volume of 1,212,295 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,559,397. The company has a market cap of $517.30 billion, a PE ratio of 40.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $576.94. The company has a 50-day moving average of $537.79 and a two-hundred day moving average of $512.17.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is 21.89%.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MA. Monness Crespi & Hardt raised shares of Mastercard from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $640.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Mastercard from $533.00 to $567.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. Seaport Res Ptn downgraded Mastercard from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $606.11.

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.