Strong Tower Advisory Services Raises Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Strong Tower Advisory Services boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 6,006 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 278 shares during the quarter. Mastercard makes up 0.8% of Strong Tower Advisory Services’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Strong Tower Advisory Services’ holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,966,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Westend Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in Mastercard in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In related news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 27,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,423,320. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $493.10, for a total transaction of $2,310,173.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 17,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,440,885.80. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $455.00, for a total value of $6,114,745.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 27,304 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,423,320. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 340,809 shares of company stock worth $159,610,703. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

MA traded up $0.74 during trading on Friday, hitting $498.76. 395,793 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,432,172. The firm has a market capitalization of $460.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.20, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $359.77 and a 1-year high of $501.80. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $479.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $462.90. The company has a quick ratio of 1.14, a current ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.51 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $6.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.85 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.45% and a return on equity of 179.78%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.18%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on MA. William Blair raised Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Compass Point initiated coverage on Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup increased their price target on Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $500.00 to $570.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Bank of America raised 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. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nineteen have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $518.96.

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.