Fullerton Fund Management Co Ltd. Increases Stock Holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Fullerton Fund Management Co Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 125.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 6,571 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,659 shares during the quarter. Fullerton Fund Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $3,460,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth about $6,022,224,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $837,017,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Mastercard by 79,739.7% during the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,555,277 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $818,962,000 after acquiring an additional 1,553,329 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in Mastercard by 15.2% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,149,181 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,817,684,000 after purchasing an additional 1,207,787 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sanders Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth approximately $617,303,000. Institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on MA shares. Evercore ISI initiated coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $550.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Mastercard from $654.00 to $644.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on Mastercard from $618.00 to $665.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $635.00 price target (up from $591.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Finally, KeyCorp increased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $630.00 to $635.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 2nd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $606.25.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.2 %

NYSE:MA opened at $568.38 on Friday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $532.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $533.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $428.86 and a fifty-two week high of $582.23. The stock has a market capitalization of $518.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.57 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.31 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 9th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th were issued a dividend of $0.76 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.53%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 21.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at $18,459,292.32. This trade represents a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total value of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares in the company, valued at approximately $46,692,629.36. This represents a 15.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Mastercard

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.