Everence Capital Management Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Everence Capital Management Inc. lowered its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 12.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 19,526 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 2,700 shares during the quarter. Mastercard accounts for about 0.7% of Everence Capital Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Everence Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $10,282,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 35,288,912 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $17,425,665,000 after acquiring an additional 257,312 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in Mastercard by 3.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 21,355,081 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $10,545,139,000 after purchasing an additional 700,769 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Mastercard by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,375,053 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $9,043,972,000 after purchasing an additional 453,773 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 120,665.3% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 8,041,758 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,971,020,000 after purchasing an additional 8,035,099 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,501,814 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,800,836,000 after purchasing an additional 304,293 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MA traded down $1.37 during trading on Friday, reaching $521.03. 513,688 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,637,441. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $523.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $489.21. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $416.53 and a 52-week high of $537.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $478.22 billion, a PE ratio of 39.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a quick ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.73 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.27 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $3.39 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This is an increase from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.58%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.00%.

Mastercard declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the credit services provider to buy up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MA shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on shares of Mastercard from $580.00 to $618.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Mastercard from $593.00 to $580.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Oppenheimer dropped their price target on Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Citigroup upped their price target on Mastercard from $566.00 to $572.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $480.00 to $509.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $562.76.

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.