Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) Shares Sold by Bridgewater Associates LP

Bridgewater Associates LP reduced its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 10.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 47,987 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 5,850 shares during the period. Bridgewater Associates LP's holdings in Mastercard were worth $25,269,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Cardano Risk Management B.V. lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 368,690 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $194,141,000 after acquiring an additional 9,611 shares during the period. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in Mastercard by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. now owns 68,237 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $35,932,000 after purchasing an additional 2,931 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Mastercard by 15.6% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,510,756 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $1,325,353,000 after purchasing an additional 337,905 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Mastercard by 4.8% in the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,031,915 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,497,160,000 after purchasing an additional 138,842 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of Mastercard by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 71,862 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $37,841,000 after buying an additional 1,194 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.8 %

MA stock traded up $4.03 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $517.46. 3,329,748 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,624,345. The stock has a market capitalization of $471.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $537.86 and a 200-day moving average price of $528.79. Mastercard Incorporated has a 12-month low of $428.86 and a 12-month high of $582.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 30th. The credit services provider reported $3.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.71 by $0.11. Mastercard had a net margin of 45.71% and a return on equity of 188.47%. On average, analysts anticipate that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current year.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be issued a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.59%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In related news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total transaction of $3,813,337.76. Following the sale, the insider now owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at $18,459,292.32. This represents a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total value of $8,678,774.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 84,871 shares of the company's stock, valued at $46,692,629.36. This trade represents a 15.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.10% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on MA shares. Monness Crespi & Hardt cut shares of Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $633.00 price objective on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Tigress Financial restated a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $607.96.

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.