44 Wealth Management LLC Boosts Stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

44 Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,820 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after buying an additional 108 shares during the quarter. 44 Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $2,094,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth about $6,022,224,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Mastercard by 65,631.5% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 8,225,637 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $4,508,636,000 after purchasing an additional 8,213,123 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth $837,017,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake 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 worth $4,817,684,000 after buying an additional 1,207,787 shares during the period. Finally, Sanders Capital LLC bought a new position in Mastercard during the fourth quarter valued at $617,303,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Mastercard

In related news, insider Linda Pistecchia Kirkpatrick sold 958 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, June 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $560.00, for a total value of $536,480.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 23,624 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,229,440. This trade represents a 3.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Raj Seshadri sold 1,100 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $546.77, for a total transaction of $601,447.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 12,921 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,064,815.17. This represents a 7.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 38,441 shares of company stock worth $20,173,035. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Mastercard Trading Up 0.9%

MA opened at $566.53 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.81. The firm has a market cap of $516.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.73, a PEG ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 1.02. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12 month low of $428.86 and a 12 month high of $594.71. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $566.17 and a 200-day moving average price of $546.25.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The credit services provider reported $3.73 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.57 by $0.16. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.21% and a return on equity of 196.87%. The business had revenue of $7.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.12 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $3.31 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 14.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 8th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.54%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is 21.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MA shares. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $633.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 14th. Wolfe Research set a $655.00 target price on Mastercard in a research report on Monday, June 23rd. Citigroup upped their target price on Mastercard from $650.00 to $652.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Truist Financial began coverage on Mastercard in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $640.00 price target for the company. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Mastercard presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $611.50.

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.