Sentry Investment Management LLC Has $1.81 Million Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Sentry Investment Management LLC reduced its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 14.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,428 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 558 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises about 0.9% of Sentry Investment Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,805,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Addison Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Addison Advisors LLC now owns 493 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $260,000 after acquiring an additional 18 shares during the last quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 3,135 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,651,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. lifted its position in Mastercard by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Capital Investment Services of America Inc. now owns 475 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $250,000 after purchasing an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Mastercard by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Augustine Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,797 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $946,000 after buying an additional 19 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Community Bank N.A. increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Community Bank N.A. now owns 2,190 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,081,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of Mastercard stock opened at $558.44 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $539.55 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $514.96. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $428.86 and a 12-month high of $576.94. 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 company has a market cap of $509.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.20, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly 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 net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. Research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid 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 is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is presently 21.89%.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, December 17th that permits the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $630.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Oppenheimer cut their price objective on Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, December 19th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Mastercard from $550.00 to $565.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Citigroup upped their target price on Mastercard from $584.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Four equities research 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $606.11.

Mastercard 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.