Wedbush Securities Inc. Increases Position in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Wedbush Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 25,851 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 733 shares during the period. Mastercard comprises approximately 0.5% of Wedbush Securities Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $14,527,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MA. ORG Partners LLC lifted its position in Mastercard by 73.2% in the second quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 698 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $394,000 after acquiring an additional 295 shares during the last quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 19.5% during the first quarter. Ethos Financial Group LLC now owns 3,174 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $1,683,000 after purchasing an additional 518 shares in the last quarter. Curio Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 22,400.0% in the 2nd quarter. Curio Wealth LLC now owns 225 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $126,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Wheelhouse Advisory Group LLC boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter. Wheelhouse Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $751,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares during the period. Finally, SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Mastercard by 4.3% in the 2nd quarter. SeaBridge Investment Advisors LLC now owns 6,463 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $3,632,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:MA opened at $551.98 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $499.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.22, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.92. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $572.24 and its 200-day simple moving average is $568.95. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.41. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $465.59 and a fifty-two week high of $601.77.

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

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 7th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 9th were given a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, October 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.6%. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio is presently 19.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on MA shares. UBS Group lifted their price target on Mastercard from $690.00 to $700.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $713.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Robert W. Baird upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $640.00 to $660.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Morgan Stanley set a $665.00 price target on shares of Mastercard and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-three have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Mastercard has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $649.26.

Insider Buying and Selling

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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 31,234 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,459,294. This trade represents a 35.60% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.09% 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.