Avanza Fonder AB Raises Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Avanza Fonder AB lifted its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 5.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 64,216 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,401 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for approximately 0.9% of Avanza Fonder AB’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Avanza Fonder AB’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $36,660,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 42.3% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,824 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,594,000 after purchasing an additional 2,028 shares during the last quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its stake in Mastercard by 8.5% in the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 2,548 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,432,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Private Management Group Inc. purchased a new position in Mastercard during the second quarter worth about $221,000. Nemes Rush Group LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 19.0% during the second quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 714 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $401,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the period. Finally, Cynosure Group LLC boosted its stake in Mastercard by 14.7% in the 2nd quarter. Cynosure Group LLC now owns 898 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $505,000 after buying an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Key Mastercard News

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Financial-sector strength is lifting payment names like Mastercard; the NYSE Financial Index moved higher in Monday trading, supporting MA. Sector Update: Financial Stocks Rise Monday Afternoon
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and market commentators see the financial sector poised to lead if sentiment improves, which can benefit large payments networks like MA. The Financial Sector Is Poised to Lead if Market Sentiment Improves. 2 Stocks to Watch.
• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard announced a partnership with MMT’s Myra to launch a “lifestyle navigator” product — a revenue/engagement positive initiative in travel and consumer services. Mastercard collabs with MMT’s Myra, launches ‘lifestyle navigator’
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage highlighting Mastercard’s long-term shareholder returns reinforces investor confidence in MA’s durable growth and cash returns. If You Invested $10,000 in Mastercard Stock 10 Years Ago, Here’s How Much You’d Have Today
• Positive Sentiment: Commentary suggests recent weakness in MA was partly tied to short-term “AI scare” flows and that a strategic deal could help restore sentiment. Mastercard was a casualty of the AI scare trade. This deal could turn it around
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple valuation/comparison pieces are examining MA vs. peers (Evertec), providing context for value investors but not implying immediate direction. EVTC vs. MA: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option? EVTC vs MA: Which Stock Is the Better Value Option? (Zacks)
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry pieces on payments strategy and European policy debate may influence long-term competitive dynamics but are not immediate catalysts for MA shares. Beyond the card giants: Why Europe needs a new vision for sovereign payments
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage of adjacent fintechs and peers (SoFi, Corpay, American Express commentary) is keeping investor attention on the sector but is only indirectly relevant to MA. Down 23%, is this Warren Buffett dividend stock undervalued?
• Negative Sentiment: Bloomberg reports Mastercard is taking a hit from the failure of Brazil’s Banco Master — a direct operational/credit exposure that can pressure regional volumes and require reserves or write-downs. Mastercard Takes Hit From the Failure of Brazil’s Banco Master

Mastercard Trading Up 0.9%

NYSE MA opened at $500.82 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $446.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.32, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 0.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.36, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $465.59 and a one year high of $601.77. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $523.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $550.05.

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

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 8th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.87 per share. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is 21.07%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MA has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Macquarie Infrastructure upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $660.00 to $675.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Raymond James Financial decreased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $707.00 to $631.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 29th. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Evercore reaffirmed a “negative” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Tuesday, March 17th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nineteen have issued a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $667.88.

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.