Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Holdings Boosted by PFG Investments LLC

PFG Investments LLC grew its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 0.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,064 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 55 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $4,476,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Palisade Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 2nd quarter valued at about $34,000. Fairway Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Mastercard by 74.0% in the third quarter. Lowe Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 87 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 37 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Mastercard by 168.6% in the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 94 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MA traded down $3.26 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $507.36. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,582,222 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,428,942. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $491.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $465.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a current ratio of 1.14 and a quick ratio of 1.14. Mastercard Incorporated has a fifty-two week low of $359.77 and a fifty-two week high of $518.82. The company has a market capitalization of $471.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.10.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The credit services provider reported $3.59 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.51 by $0.08. The firm had revenue of $6.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.85 billion. Mastercard had a net margin of 46.45% and a return on equity of 179.78%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Mastercard Incorporated will post 14.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 8th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, October 9th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 9th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.52%. Mastercard’s payout ratio is presently 20.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Susquehanna increased their target price on shares of Mastercard from $535.00 to $540.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on Mastercard from $500.00 to $526.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. KeyCorp upped their target price on Mastercard from $490.00 to $515.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Compass Point initiated coverage on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $525.00 price target on the stock. Finally, William Blair upgraded shares of Mastercard to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 31st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eighteen have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $525.68.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $489.86, for a total value of $2,294,994.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief marketing officer now owns 15,031 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,363,085.66. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, major shareholder Foundation Mastercard sold 90,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $468.80, for a total transaction of $42,192,000.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 91,649,308 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $42,965,195,590.40. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CMO Venkata R. Madabhushi sold 4,685 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $489.86, for a total value of $2,294,994.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief marketing officer now directly owns 15,031 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,363,085.66. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 340,809 shares of company stock valued at $159,610,703. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company’s stock.

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.