Code Waechter LLC Buys Shares of 905 Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Code Waechter LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm purchased 905 shares of the credit services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $447,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Westend Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Palisade Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Mastercard in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the second quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Mastercard stock traded up $4.24 on Friday, reaching $502.26. 1,920,085 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,439,908. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $359.77 and a twelve month high of $502.92. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $480.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $463.08. The stock has a market cap of $464.01 billion, a PE ratio of 38.40, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.51 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.85 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 179.78% and a net margin of 46.45%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.3 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. 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 payout ratio is 20.18%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on MA. William Blair upgraded shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Oppenheimer initiated coverage on Mastercard in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $591.00 target price for the company. BMO Capital Markets reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $520.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, August 14th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Mastercard from $528.00 to $538.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Argus raised shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Five 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $518.96.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Mastercard news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 13,439 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 27,304 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,423,320. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $489.86, for a total transaction of $2,294,994.10. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 15,031 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,363,085.66. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 340,809 shares of company stock valued at $159,610,703. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.