North Star Asset Management Inc. Acquires 470 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

North Star Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 39,658 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 470 shares during the period. North Star Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $16,914,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MA. Bornite Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth approximately $21,442,000. United Bank increased its holdings in Mastercard by 34.5% during the 1st quarter. United Bank now owns 6,007 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,147,000 after purchasing an additional 1,541 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in Mastercard by 30.1% during the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 272,358 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $97,335,000 after purchasing an additional 63,040 shares during the period. First Western Trust Bank purchased a new position in Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth $1,168,000. Finally, Bridgewater Associates LP purchased a new position in Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth $12,926,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on MA shares. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Mastercard from $530.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Mastercard from $490.00 to $530.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. KeyCorp raised their price objective on Mastercard from $475.00 to $490.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Mizuho reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $480.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on Mastercard from $433.00 to $482.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $490.23.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.2 %

MA stock traded up $0.69 on Friday, hitting $455.39. 2,548,844 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,169,012. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $357.85 and a 12-month high of $490.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $471.70 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $434.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.17. The stock has a market cap of $424.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.08.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.08 by $0.10. Mastercard had a return on equity of 191.22% and a net margin of 44.60%. The company had revenue of $6.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.65 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 8th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 22.32%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 98 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $439.52, for a total transaction of $43,072.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 6,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,740,407.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 98 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $439.52, for a total value of $43,072.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 6,235 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,740,407.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total value of $97,450.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 97,543,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $47,527,976,823. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 148,728 shares of company stock valued at $68,483,403. 0.13% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.