KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Invests $186.95 Million in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 355,034 shares of the credit services provider's stock, valued at approximately $186,950,000. Mastercard accounts for approximately 0.9% of KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS's holdings, making the stock its 14th largest position.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MA. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 2.3% in the 3rd quarter. Temasek Holdings Private Ltd now owns 2,805,554 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $1,385,383,000 after purchasing an additional 62,891 shares in the last quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. boosted its position in Mastercard by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Cardano Risk Management B.V. now owns 368,690 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $194,141,000 after buying an additional 9,611 shares during the period. Dock Street Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of 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 valued at $35,932,000 after buying an additional 2,931 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of 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 valued at $1,325,353,000 after buying an additional 337,905 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of 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 worth $1,497,160,000 after buying an additional 138,842 shares during the period. 97.28% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In related news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 34,524 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,459,292.32. The trade was a 17.12 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of Mastercard stock traded down $1.15 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $542.53. 736,479 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,376,994. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $428.86 and a 1 year high of $582.23. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $548.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $525.42. The stock has a market capitalization of $494.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.07, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.68, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

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

Mastercard announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Tuesday, December 17th that allows the company to buyback $12.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the credit services provider to reacquire up to 2.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Mastercard Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a $0.76 dividend. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.56%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 9th. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.89%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Susquehanna upped their price target on shares of Mastercard from $605.00 to $670.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Seaport Res Ptn lowered shares of Mastercard from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. Finally, Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on shares of Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, December 19th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-four have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $606.11.

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.