Martingale Asset Management L P Reduces Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

Martingale Asset Management L P lowered its holdings in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 4.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 76,804 shares of the credit services provider's stock after selling 3,295 shares during the quarter. Mastercard accounts for about 1.0% of Martingale Asset Management L P's investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Martingale Asset Management L P's holdings in Mastercard were worth $40,443,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. NewSquare Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Mastercard in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Mastercard during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 62.5% during the 4th quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 65 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 25 shares during the period. Finally, CoreFirst Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Mastercard in the fourth quarter worth $37,000. 97.28% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MA has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on Mastercard from $591.00 to $588.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Mastercard from $572.00 to $650.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $640.00 target price (up previously from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Barclays boosted their target price on Mastercard from $595.00 to $650.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, William Blair restated an "outperform" rating on shares of Mastercard in a report on Friday, January 31st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $607.96.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of Mastercard stock traded up $2.41 during trading on Monday, hitting $512.16. 1,143,007 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,929,592. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $542.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $528.53. 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 market cap of $466.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.06. Mastercard Incorporated has a 52-week low of $428.86 and a 52-week high of $582.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last announced its 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 return on equity of 188.47% and a net margin of 45.71%. On average, equities analysts predict that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 9th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 9th will be given a dividend of $0.76 per share. 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%.

Mastercard announced that its board has initiated a share buyback program 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 programs are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

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

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.