Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC Boosts Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC grew its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 22.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 6,034 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,089 shares during the period. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,574,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 2.9% in the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,075,358 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $3,593,025,000 after buying an additional 251,516 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in Mastercard by 6.9% during the third quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 7,966,348 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,153,957,000 after purchasing an additional 515,481 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its stake in Mastercard by 5.9% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 5,510,259 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,181,964,000 after purchasing an additional 306,663 shares during the last quarter. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in Mastercard by 1.1% during the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 5,314,881 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,104,214,000 after purchasing an additional 56,642 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Mastercard by 0.4% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 4,557,530 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $1,804,372,000 after purchasing an additional 16,019 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, insider Craig Vosburg sold 13,542 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.06, for a total transaction of $6,230,132.52. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 46,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,388,649.46. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Mastercard news, insider Craig Vosburg sold 13,542 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $460.06, for a total transaction of $6,230,132.52. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 46,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,388,649.46. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 109,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $457.46, for a total value of $49,863,140.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 97,215,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $44,472,114,797.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 257,630 shares of company stock valued at $118,303,470 over the last 90 days. 0.13% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Mastercard Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE MA traded up $5.16 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $461.91. The stock had a trading volume of 1,272,014 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,389,599. The company has a market capitalization of $430.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.63, a P/E/G ratio of 1.73 and a beta of 1.08. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $471.66 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $434.80. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52 week low of $357.85 and a 52 week high of $490.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a current ratio of 1.17.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.18 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.08 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $6.55 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.46 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 191.22% and a net margin of 44.60%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.65 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 9th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 8th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.57%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 22.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on MA. Oppenheimer reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $510.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $432.00 to $499.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, February 1st. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $525.00 to $545.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $490.00 to $530.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, William Blair reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, January 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $490.23.

Mastercard Company 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.