Mastercard Incorporated $MA Holdings Cut by Conning Inc.

Conning Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 10.8% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 12,424 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 1,503 shares during the period. Conning Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $6,851,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Fundsmith LLP purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the second quarter valued at about $639,458,000. Corient Private Wealth LP increased its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 147.2% in the second quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 1,682,183 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $863,969,000 after buying an additional 1,001,671 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in Mastercard by 295.8% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 860,011 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $441,702,000 after purchasing an additional 642,724 shares during the period. SEB Asset Management AB purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 1st quarter valued at $293,574,000. Finally, Soroban Capital Partners LP grew its stake in shares of Mastercard by 30.5% in the first quarter. Soroban Capital Partners LP now owns 2,464,499 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,231,412,000 after purchasing an additional 575,412 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In related news, CFO Ling Hai sold 4,317 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $620.00, for a total transaction of $2,676,540.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 35,750 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,165,000. This trade represents a 10.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing 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 business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $575.00, for a total transaction of $8,838,900.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 93,693 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $53,873,475. The trade was a 14.09% 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. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 72,676 shares of company stock valued at $41,966,586. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Mastercard

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Favorable earnings setup: JPMorgan analysts see potential upside from durable consumer spending, accelerating international transactions and demand for cybersecurity services, particularly after Visa’s solid results. Analyst Signals Favorable Earnings Setup for Mastercard After Visa’s Results
• Positive Sentiment: Expectations for another beat: Analysts and market coverage point to expanding cross-border activity and growth in value-added services as potential drivers of revenue and earnings above consensus, although higher expenses remain a consideration. Mastercard Looks Poised for a Q3 Earnings Beat
• Positive Sentiment: Expansion of payment capabilities: Mastercard is extending its reach through Google Pay in Nigeria, embedded B2B payments with Tech Mahindra, and Mastercard Max, a platform designed to help Asia-Pacific issuers promote card benefits. These initiatives could support longer-term transaction and services growth. Mastercard and Interswitch Bring Google Pay to Nigeria
• Neutral Sentiment: Stablecoin opportunity remains developing: Mastercard’s Global Money Platform and stablecoin-related initiatives broaden its addressable market, but the company acknowledges that conversions between fiat currencies and stablecoins can limit the speed and benefits of these payments. The Stablecoin Sandwich
• Neutral Sentiment: Valuation raises the bar: Mastercard’s recent rally and record-level trading mean the upcoming report must demonstrate sustained double-digit growth to justify the stock’s premium valuation. Management is also scheduled to participate in two November investor conferences. What Mastercard’s Quarter Has to Prove
• Negative Sentiment: Legal overhang: Mastercard and Visa face potential UK class actions seeking approximately £5 billion over alleged excessive card-payment fees. While the financial impact and outcome remain uncertain, the litigation could pressure future interchange economics. Visa and Mastercard Face UK Lawsuit Over Card Fees

Mastercard Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $610.57 on Thursday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $464.52 and a 52-week high of $633.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $534.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.58, a P/E/G ratio of 1.78 and a beta of 0.76. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $584.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $535.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.96, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a current ratio of 1.06.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The credit services provider reported $5.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.77 by $0.27. The company had revenue of $9.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $9.08 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 239.99% and a net margin of 46.34%. The firm’s revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $4.15 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 19.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared 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. This represents a $3.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 9th. Mastercard’s payout ratio is currently 19.14%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MA. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $633.00 to $674.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 23rd. Piper Sandler raised their price target on Mastercard from $597.00 to $710.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $632.00 price target (up from $609.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, July 31st. Clear Str raised shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $700.00 to $735.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirty have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $683.94.

Mastercard Company 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.