MML Investors Services LLC Purchases 6,194 Shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA)

MML Investors Services LLC raised its position in shares of Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA - Free Report) by 3.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 169,126 shares of the credit services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 6,194 shares during the quarter. MML Investors Services LLC's holdings in Mastercard were worth $89,056,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 77,179,138 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $40,640,219,000 after buying an additional 377,302 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its stake in Mastercard by 4.3% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 22,267,937 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $11,725,627,000 after acquiring an additional 912,856 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Mastercard by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 18,657,792 shares of the credit services provider's stock worth $9,800,202,000 after purchasing an additional 282,739 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Mastercard in the fourth quarter valued at $6,022,224,000. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 9.1% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 9,760,740 shares of the credit services provider's stock valued at $5,139,713,000 after purchasing an additional 817,836 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Mastercard

In other Mastercard news, insider Edward Grunde Mclaughlin sold 7,132 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $534.68, for a total value of $3,813,337.76. Following the sale, the insider now owns 34,524 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,459,292.32. This trade represents a 17.12 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Michael Miebach sold 15,775 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $550.16, for a total transaction of $8,678,774.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 84,871 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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. Insiders own 0.10% of the company's stock.

Mastercard Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MA traded up $5.65 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $535.66. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,209,054 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,630,840. The firm has a market capitalization of $488.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.56, a P/E/G 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 stock has a fifty day moving average price of $535.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $529.34. Mastercard Incorporated has a one year low of $428.86 and a one year high of $582.23.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA - Get Free Report) last issued its 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%. On average, research analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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 paid a $0.76 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 9th. This represents a $3.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.57%. Mastercard's dividend payout ratio is currently 21.89%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on MA. Seaport Res Ptn lowered Mastercard from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. UBS Group upped their target price on Mastercard from $600.00 to $660.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Raymond James reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $640.00 price target (up previously from $614.00) on shares of Mastercard in a research report on Friday, January 31st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Mastercard from $585.00 to $625.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Monness Crespi & Hardt lowered shares of Mastercard from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, twenty-three have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Mastercard has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target 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.