Mastercard Incorporated $MA Shares Sold by Fulcrum Asset Management LLP

Fulcrum Asset Management LLP decreased its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 29.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,423 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 3,914 shares during the period. Fulcrum Asset Management LLP’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $4,802,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MA. Robinswood Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. raised its position in Mastercard by 820.0% during the 4th quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 46 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 41 shares during the last quarter. Strive Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Hyposwiss Advisors SA acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, First Pacific Financial boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 113.8% in the 1st quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 62 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard and QNB Group processed Syria’s first international card transaction in more than 15 years. The milestone marks the reopening and modernization of Syria’s international payments infrastructure following the lifting of certain U.S. restrictions. Although the near-term financial contribution is likely to be small, the development creates a potential new market and demonstrates Mastercard’s ability to support payments expansion. Syria marks first international card transaction in more than 15 years with Mastercard and QNB Group
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts have given Mastercard a consensus “Buy” rating. Continued Wall Street support adds to the bullish backdrop, though the rating itself may already be reflected in the share price. Mastercard Incorporated Given Consensus Rating of Buy by Analysts
• Positive Sentiment: Pershing Square founder Bill Ackman added Mastercard to the hedge fund’s portfolio. The purchase may improve investor sentiment by signaling confidence from a prominent long-term investor, although it does not change Mastercard’s operating outlook. Bill Ackman Just Made His Biggest Portfolio Overhaul in Years
• Positive Sentiment: A partnership with Klook targets growing travel and experiences spending across Asia Pacific. Mastercard cardholder benefits and additional travel-related payment touchpoints could support transaction volume in a high-growth region. Klook and Mastercard collaborate to enhance travelers’ experiences across Asia Pacific
• Neutral Sentiment: Mastercard will participate in the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology Conference on September 10, where CFO Ling Hai is scheduled to speak. Investors may look for updates on growth, margins and capital allocation, but no new financial information was provided. Mastercard to Participate in Upcoming Investor Conference
• Neutral Sentiment: Mastercard’s name appears as a supporter of an XRPL/Ripple hackathon, but reports caution that the sponsorship does not represent a new cryptocurrency partnership or major product launch. Mastercard’s Name Is on the Ripple Hackathon, But Don’t Get Ahead of Yourself

Insider Activity

In related news, insider J. Mehra Sachin sold 1,000 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $572.07, for a total value of $572,070.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 39,916 shares in the company, valued at $22,834,746.12. The trade was a 2.44% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,372 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $575.00, for a total value of $8,838,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 93,693 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $53,873,475. The trade was a 14.09% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders sold 71,357 shares of company stock worth $40,637,262. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MA has been the topic of a number of research reports. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $632.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Mastercard in a report on Monday, June 29th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $597.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group increased their price target on Mastercard from $640.00 to $670.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Wall Street Zen lowered Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 2nd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Mastercard from $640.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-five have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $664.71.

Mastercard Stock Performance

MA opened at $595.51 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $549.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $519.62. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $464.52 and a 1 year high of $601.62. The stock has a market cap of $521.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.76, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $5.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.77 by $0.27. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 239.99%. The company had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.08 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $4.15 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 7th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 9th were given a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 9th. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 19.14%.

Mastercard Company Profile

Mastercard Incorporated is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 200 countries and territories. The company facilitates electronic payments and transaction processing for credit, debit and prepaid card products carrying the Mastercard brand, while also providing a range of payment-related services to issuers, acquirers and merchants. Its technology and network enable authorization, clearing and settlement of payments and support a broad set of use cases including point-of-sale, e-commerce and mobile payments.

Beyond core transaction processing, Mastercard offers a suite of value-added services such as fraud and risk management, identity and authentication tools, tokenization and digital wallet support, cross-border and commercial payment solutions, and data analytics and consulting services for merchants and financial partners.