KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Boosts Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS boosted its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 4.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 378,034 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 14,900 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for about 0.9% of KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $215,030,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC purchased a new position in shares of Mastercard in the second quarter valued at approximately $11,421,213,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 55,868.1% in the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 13,421,148 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $7,541,880,000 after acquiring an additional 13,397,168 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Mastercard in the second quarter valued at $6,725,317,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 25.6% during the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 6,372,404 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,580,909,000 after purchasing an additional 1,299,977 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 1.2% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 78,475,807 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $44,098,695,000 after purchasing an additional 931,132 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Mastercard Price Performance

NYSE:MA opened at $580.20 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.12, a quick ratio of 1.12 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40. The firm has a market cap of $521.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 0.86. The company’s 50-day moving average is $555.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $566.28. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $465.59 and a 12-month high of $601.77.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The credit services provider reported $4.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.31 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $8.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.53 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 202.03% and a net margin of 45.28%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $3.89 EPS. Research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 9th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 9th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, December 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $645.00 to $654.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $713.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, October 31st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $657.48.

Mastercard Profile

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.