Mastercard Incorporated $MA Stock: Nisa Investment Advisors LLC Cuts Holdings

Nisa Investment Advisors LLC lowered its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 1.3% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 249,037 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 3,172 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up 0.4% of Nisa Investment Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $137,336,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Foster Group Inc. raised its stake in Mastercard by 0.9% in the third quarter. Foster Group Inc. now owns 2,122 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,170,000 after buying an additional 18 shares during the period. Athena Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 3.8% in the second quarter. Athena Wealth Management LLC now owns 514 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $264,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Novem Group lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 0.4% in the second quarter. Novem Group now owns 4,680 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,404,000 after buying an additional 19 shares during the last quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter. Vista Capital Partners Inc. now owns 444 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $228,000 after acquiring an additional 19 shares during the period. Finally, Brandywine Oak Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Brandywine Oak Private Wealth LLC now owns 2,842 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,420,000 after acquiring an additional 20 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.7%

Mastercard stock opened at $620.62 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $543.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.14, a P/E/G ratio of 1.76 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.06, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96. Mastercard Incorporated has a twelve month low of $464.52 and a twelve month high of $624.29. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $578.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $537.01.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $5.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 firm had revenue of $9.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.08 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $4.15 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 9th will be given a $0.87 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 9th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.14%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MA has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. KeyCorp boosted their target price on Mastercard from $670.00 to $680.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. BNP Paribas Exane increased their price target on Mastercard from $680.00 to $713.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Truist Financial raised their price target on Mastercard from $554.00 to $633.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Mastercard from $642.00 to $696.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 31st. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $664.00 to $667.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $682.66.

More Mastercard News

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard introduced its Global Money Platform, which integrates stablecoins with traditional currencies to support cross-border payments. The initiative could expand transaction volumes and create new opportunities among banks, businesses and fintech customers. Mastercard expands stablecoin reach with new money platform
• Positive Sentiment: The company launched Stablecoin Security, an API that combines payment and blockchain intelligence to screen for fraud, scams and sanctions exposure before funds move on-chain. The tool may reduce institutional concerns about stablecoins while creating additional security and risk-management revenue opportunities. Mastercard introduces risk intelligence to enable more secure stablecoin payments
• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard also unveiled an AI-powered Agent Detection Score to identify transactions initiated by software rather than humans. The product positions the network to manage fraud and trust risks as autonomous shopping agents become more widespread. Mastercard unveiled an AI Agent Detection Score
• Positive Sentiment: New and expanded partnerships, including initiatives with Moovn, BankIslami, Extend and Finsei, broaden Mastercard’s digital-payment, business-software and regional payment reach. These efforts could support long-term payment volume growth.
• Neutral Sentiment: CFO Ling Hai sold 4,317 shares valued at approximately $2.7 million under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 plan. The transaction may weigh modestly on sentiment, but its scheduled nature limits its usefulness as a signal about Mastercard’s outlook. Mastercard CFO insider sale
• Negative Sentiment: With MA near a record level and valued at roughly 34 times earnings, expectations remain elevated. The stock may require continued strong revenue growth and earnings beats to sustain further gains.

Insider Activity at Mastercard

In other news, insider Sachin Mehra sold 7,444 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $577.13, for a total transaction of $4,296,155.72. Following the transaction, the insider owned 40,916 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,613,851.08. This trade represents a 15.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 16,628 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $567.68, for a total value of $9,439,383.04. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 115,921 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,806,033.28. The trade was a 12.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 72,676 shares of company stock valued at $41,966,586 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.09% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Profile

Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE: MA) is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses. The company facilitates electronic payments and provides technology that supports transactions conducted through credit, debit, prepaid and commercial payment products.

In addition to operating its payments network, Mastercard offers services in areas such as payment security, fraud prevention, authentication, cybersecurity, data and analytics, loyalty programs, digital identity and open banking.