Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Acquires 332,473 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 112.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 629,204 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 332,473 shares during the quarter. Mastercard comprises about 0.6% of Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.07% of Mastercard worth $310,701,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. increased its stake in shares of Mastercard by 14.2% in the first quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 20,552 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $9,897,000 after purchasing an additional 2,556 shares during the period. Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. bought a new position in shares of Mastercard during the 1st quarter worth about $608,000. SteelPeak Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of Mastercard by 48.6% during the second quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 4,928 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $2,174,000 after buying an additional 1,612 shares during the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the first quarter valued at about $2,938,000. Finally, OMC Financial Services LTD acquired a new stake in Mastercard during the first quarter worth about $17,854,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:MA traded down $2.10 during trading on Thursday, hitting $511.63. 752,863 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,427,426. The stock has a market cap of $475.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 1.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $490.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $464.93. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $359.77 and a fifty-two week high of $518.82.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.51 by $0.08. Mastercard had a return on equity of 179.78% and a net margin of 46.45%. The business had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.85 billion. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.3 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, November 8th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.52%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 9th. Mastercard’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.99%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total transaction of $55,746,740.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 92,033,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $43,113,923,465.68. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Mastercard news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 119,000 shares of Mastercard stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $468.46, for a total value of $55,746,740.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 92,033,308 shares in the company, valued at approximately $43,113,923,465.68. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $489.86, for a total transaction of $2,294,994.10. Following the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 15,031 shares in the company, valued at $7,363,085.66. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 340,809 shares of company stock worth $159,610,703 in the last three months. 0.10% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Mastercard from $570.00 to $593.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Mastercard from $532.00 to $533.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Mastercard from $490.00 to $515.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $500.00 to $526.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $520.00 price target on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, August 14th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $525.68.

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.