Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Position Reduced by Ninety One UK Ltd

Ninety One UK Ltd trimmed its stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 18.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,150,472 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 259,029 shares during the quarter. Mastercard makes up 1.5% of Ninety One UK Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Ninety One UK Ltd owned 0.12% of Mastercard worth $490,688,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the first quarter worth $25,000. Barometer Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter worth $36,000. Mascoma Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the third quarter worth $38,000. Finally, Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 661.5% during the third quarter. Thomas J. Herzfeld Advisors Inc. now owns 99 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of MA traded down $4.94 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $455.22. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 826,344 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,390,260. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $471.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $433.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $424.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.89, a PEG ratio of 1.74 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 1.17. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $357.85 and a fifty-two week high of $490.00.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.08 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $6.55 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.46 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 44.60% and a return on equity of 191.22%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.65 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be given a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.58%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 8th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MA has been the topic of several recent research reports. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $545.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $504.00 to $520.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $525.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $475.00 to $490.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $432.00 to $499.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $490.23.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In related news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total transaction of $97,450.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 97,543,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,527,976,823. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, insider Ajay Bhalla sold 98 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $439.52, for a total value of $43,072.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,235 shares in the company, valued at $2,740,407.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 200 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $487.25, for a total transaction of $97,450.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 97,543,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $47,527,976,823. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 41,728 shares of company stock valued at $19,479,753 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.13% of the company’s stock.

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.