Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Cuts Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System trimmed its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 64,419 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 576 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $28,419,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at $4,595,559,000. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the first quarter worth about $660,652,000. PineStone Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 145.6% during the second quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,777,468 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $784,148,000 after acquiring an additional 1,053,616 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 75,253,734 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $32,096,470,000 after purchasing an additional 742,076 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors grew its stake in Mastercard by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 21,041,685 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $8,974,478,000 after purchasing an additional 676,452 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on MA. KeyCorp increased their target price on Mastercard from $490.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $532.00 to $533.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Susquehanna lifted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $535.00 to $540.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Bank of America lowered shares of Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $505.00 to $480.00 in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $520.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-one have assigned a buy rating and four have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $512.09.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.5 %

MA traded up $2.54 during trading on Friday, reaching $483.34. The company had a trading volume of 2,982,115 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,451,809. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $452.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $458.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.14. The company has a market cap of $449.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.42, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.09. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $359.77 and a 12-month high of $490.00.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, July 9th were given a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, July 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 20.99%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Raj Seshadri sold 3,464 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $447.84, for a total value of $1,551,317.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 13,736 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,151,530.24. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total transaction of $6,114,745.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 27,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,423,320. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Raj Seshadri sold 3,464 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $447.84, for a total transaction of $1,551,317.76. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,736 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,151,530.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,516,959 shares of company stock worth $686,890,426 over the last 90 days. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Mastercard Company 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.