Mastercard Incorporated $MA is SouthState Corp’s 9th Largest Position

SouthState Corp cut its stake in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.8% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 79,227 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 622 shares during the period. Mastercard makes up about 1.9% of SouthState Corp’s holdings, making the stock its 9th largest holding. SouthState Corp’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $44,521,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MA. LGT Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the second quarter worth approximately $25,000. Family Legacy Financial Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the second quarter worth approximately $26,000. Flaharty Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the first quarter worth approximately $27,000. Keystone Global Partners LLC purchased a new position in Mastercard in the first quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, IMG Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Mastercard in the second quarter worth approximately $31,000. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.1%

Mastercard stock opened at $553.55 on Thursday. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1-year low of $465.59 and a 1-year high of $601.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market cap of $500.42 billion, a PE ratio of 37.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.97. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $573.88 and its two-hundred day moving average is $568.77.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The credit services provider reported $4.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $4.31 by $0.07. Mastercard had a return on equity of 200.01% and a net margin of 44.93%.The company had revenue of $8.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.53 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.89 earnings per share. Mastercard’s quarterly revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 9th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 9th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 19.44%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Mastercard news, CFO J. Mehra Sachin sold 17,263 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $591.00, for a total value of $10,202,433.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 31,234 shares in the company, valued at $18,459,294. This trade represents a 35.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.09% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MA has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on Mastercard from $645.00 to $654.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Mastercard from $669.00 to $660.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft initiated coverage on Mastercard in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $650.00 price target for the company. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating and set a $665.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $647.59.

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.