Plato Investment Management Ltd Buys 1,944 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Plato Investment Management Ltd boosted its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 10.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,966 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,944 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises approximately 0.8% of Plato Investment Management Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Plato Investment Management Ltd’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $11,835,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of MA. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in Mastercard by 42.3% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,824 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,594,000 after acquiring an additional 2,028 shares during the last quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 64.3% during the second quarter. Robertson Stephens Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,755 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,110,000 after purchasing an additional 1,470 shares during the last quarter. PDS Planning Inc boosted its position in Mastercard by 31.4% during the second quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 6,230 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,501,000 after purchasing an additional 1,489 shares during the period. Brucke Financial Inc. increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 8.3% in the second quarter. Brucke Financial Inc. now owns 1,356 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $762,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Strong Tower Advisory Services raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.5% in the second quarter. Strong Tower Advisory Services now owns 6,182 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,474,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Price Performance

Mastercard stock opened at $549.07 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $493.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.24, a PEG ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a quick ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $555.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $564.31. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $465.59 and a 52 week high of $601.77.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The credit services provider reported $4.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.24 by $0.52. The firm had revenue of $8.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.80 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 203.92% and a net margin of 45.65%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.82 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 9th will be given a dividend of $0.87 per share. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 9th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 21.07%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MA. Cantor Fitzgerald upgraded shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. TD Cowen raised their price target on Mastercard from $668.00 to $671.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 30th. Evercore set a $610.00 price objective on Mastercard in a research note on Friday, December 12th. Raymond James Financial cut their target price on Mastercard from $707.00 to $631.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 29th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $685.00 target price on Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, sixteen have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $669.18.

About Mastercard

Mastercard Incorporated is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 200 countries and territories. The company facilitates electronic payments and transaction processing for credit, debit and prepaid card products carrying the Mastercard brand, while also providing a range of payment-related services to issuers, acquirers and merchants. Its technology and network enable authorization, clearing and settlement of payments and support a broad set of use cases including point-of-sale, e-commerce and mobile payments.

Beyond core transaction processing, Mastercard offers a suite of value-added services such as fraud and risk management, identity and authentication tools, tokenization and digital wallet support, cross-border and commercial payment solutions, and data analytics and consulting services for merchants and financial partners.