Norden Group LLC Raises Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Norden Group LLC increased its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 8,006 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 54 shares during the quarter. Mastercard makes up approximately 0.5% of Norden Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Norden Group LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $3,415,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Barometer Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Mastercard in the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Mastercard by 661.5% during the 3rd quarter. Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc. now owns 99 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Finally, JCIC Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 34.0% in the fourth quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. now owns 134 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $57,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on MA shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Mastercard from $490.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on Mastercard from $480.00 to $490.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $525.00 to $545.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. William Blair reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Finally, Mizuho reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $480.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, March 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $490.23.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.9 %

MA stock traded down $3.90 on Tuesday, reaching $453.20. 1,179,130 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,390,903. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $471.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $437.01. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $357.85 and a one year high of $490.00. The company has a market cap of $422.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 1.08.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.08 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $6.55 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.46 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 191.22% and a net margin of 44.60%. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.65 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.35 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 8th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 22.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In related news, insider Craig Vosburg sold 13,542 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.06, for a total value of $6,230,132.52. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 46,491 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,388,649.46. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 111,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, April 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $457.15, for a total transaction of $50,743,650.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 97,432,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,541,179,602.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Craig Vosburg sold 13,542 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.06, for a total value of $6,230,132.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 46,491 shares in the company, valued at $21,388,649.46. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 480,630 shares of company stock worth $221,479,470. Insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.