Evoke Wealth LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Evoke Wealth LLC lessened its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 30,529 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 934 shares during the quarter. Evoke Wealth LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $16,076,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 2.3% in the third quarter. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd now owns 2,805,554 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,385,383,000 after acquiring an additional 62,891 shares during the period. Cardano Risk Management B.V. increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 368,690 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $194,141,000 after purchasing an additional 9,611 shares during the last quarter. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. now owns 68,237 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $35,932,000 after purchasing an additional 2,931 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 15.6% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,510,756 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,325,353,000 after buying an additional 337,905 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Mastercard by 2.0% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,010,430 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,474,151,000 after buying an additional 100,550 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Price Performance

NYSE:MA opened at $532.66 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $485.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.35, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $545.80 and a 200-day simple moving average of $523.50. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $582.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. Equities analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program 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 shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.89%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on MA shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target 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. DZ Bank raised Mastercard from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $620.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 31st. William Blair reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $606.11.

About Mastercard

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.