Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Purchased by Promethos Capital LLC

Promethos Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 3.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,458 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 280 shares during the period. Mastercard accounts for about 1.6% of Promethos Capital LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Promethos Capital LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $4,454,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Mastercard by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,031,915 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,497,160,000 after buying an additional 138,842 shares during the period. Passumpsic Savings Bank lifted its stake in Mastercard by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Passumpsic Savings Bank now owns 4,990 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,464,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Resource Group boosted its holdings in Mastercard by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Advisory Resource Group now owns 2,276 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,124,000 after acquiring an additional 29 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC grew its position in Mastercard by 18.5% in the 3rd quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 3,105 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,533,000 after acquiring an additional 485 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SkyView Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.2% during the third quarter. SkyView Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,035 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $2,493,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares in the last quarter. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of MA opened at $509.66 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $464.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $582.23. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $542.81 and a 200-day simple moving average of $528.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.60%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Mastercard declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Tuesday, December 17th that authorizes the company to buyback $12.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the credit services provider to purchase up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MA has been the topic of a number of research reports. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on shares of Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Barclays lifted their target price on Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Tigress Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Monday, March 10th. Seaport Res Ptn cut Mastercard from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered shares of Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $607.96.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at $18,459,292.32. The trade was a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total value of $8,678,774.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares in the company, valued at $46,692,629.36. This represents a 15.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is owned by 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.