Monument Capital Management Buys 110 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Monument Capital Management grew its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 6.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,941 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the period. Monument Capital Management’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,022,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the third quarter worth about $25,000. First Personal Financial Services purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter valued at $55,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 24.1% during the fourth quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 108 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 21 shares during the period. Finally, FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard during the 3rd quarter valued at $54,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Tigress Financial upped their target price on Mastercard from $550.00 to $685.00 and gave the company a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Four investment 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $606.11.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of MA stock opened at $564.77 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $518.36 billion, a PE ratio of 40.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $535.49 and its 200 day moving average price is $509.98. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $428.86 and a 52-week high of $576.94.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.98 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Mastercard declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

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.