Nikulski Financial Inc. Has $1.95 Million Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Nikulski Financial Inc. reduced its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 5.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,704 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 225 shares during the period. Nikulski Financial Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $1,950,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Goldstein Advisors LLC increased its position in Mastercard by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Goldstein Advisors LLC now owns 1,516 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $749,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares during the period. Community Bank N.A. raised its position 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 acquiring an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Mastercard by 1.5% during the third quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC now owns 1,398 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $690,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Boltwood Capital Management raised its holdings in Mastercard by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Boltwood Capital Management now owns 2,055 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,082,000 after purchasing an additional 20 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Traveka Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC now owns 1,478 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $778,000 after buying an additional 20 shares during the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Mastercard stock opened at $533.50 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $489.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $524.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $497.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $428.86 and a 1-year high of $537.70.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.73 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 178.27%. The company had revenue of $7.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.27 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $3.39 earnings per share. Mastercard’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.47 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 10th. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.66. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 23.00%.

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to repurchase $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the credit services provider to repurchase up to 2.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $510.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Mastercard from $575.00 to $591.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. KeyCorp raised their price target on Mastercard from $515.00 to $580.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $593.00 to $580.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $496.00 to $532.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $567.29.

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.